Unresolved
Got in my truck to leave for the office a few days back, and as I was pulling out of my parking spot, I couldn’t help but notice a big glop of bird ummm…bird poop… smack in my line-of-sight on the windshield. No problem I thought, as I reached for the windshield washer knob. Nothing came out. The reservoir was empty.
I could of course still see safely, so I drove on to the office. There, faced with the usual assortment of work matters, I promptly forgot about the problem.
Leaving the office a few hours later, there I was again, looking at my world around a big glop of bird poop. Of course, the windshield washer reservoir remained empty.
As I rolled out, seeing the way clearly enough but not really enjoying the ride, I had an insight.
That glop of bird poop is like unresolved issues in life. It’s not going to stop me from moving through life, but it certainly degrades the experience. I can still see around it, even a little bit through it, but it makes for, let’s say, a crappy experience.
It also became clear, pending a rainstorm in this case, that bird poop was not going to clean itself. Nor was the windshield washer reservoir going to fill itself. I needed to be intentional.
At the next light I took my bottle of Sam’s Choice drinking water and reached out the window to wet the windshield enough so that the wipers could do their job. I took deliberate, proactive action.
What’s the bird poop on my windshield of life? What unresolved issues have yet to be confronted in the spirit of truth and reality? For what issue have I not sought thorough, transparent reconciliation? Have I wronged someone and not made it right to the best of my ability? Are there problems in my business that I keep pushing to the bottom of the pile, in hopes the problem goes away?
If that specific bird poop doesn’t come back (of course it won’t, it can’t), it’s likely I’ll get pooped on again, sooner than later. Keeping that windshield clean is not a one-time proposition.
So, three days later, what have I not done? I’ve not gone to the Walmart for a jug of windshield washer fluid.
Today. For sure. Today. I keep telling myself.