My car is a mess. It’s an absolute disaster, most days. Empty coffee mugs are scattered all over the front passenger seat. Old mail litters the floor in the back seat, and remnants of a potted plant I transported weeks ago are scattered all over the upholstery. Road grime is caked on the exterior, and the windows are all streaked with…something.
It’s tolerable – until it isn’t.
At some point, it’s too much. I’m over the edge. I realize that the mess I’m living in is just too much. Maybe it’s the seventeenth coffee cup on the floor. Maybe it’s the mystery smell coming from the back seat. Or maybe it’s the feeling when I offer a ride to a friend, and I immediately shove everything in the trunk to preserve some level of being a put-together adult. Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter. A line has been reached, and the only option is to rectify the situation.
And then I clean it. I haul the coffee cups inside the apartment, I bust out the Windex and awkwardly clean the inside of the windshield and all the windows. I even grab a nifty essential-oil thing-a-ma-bob to make everything smell amazing. And then I go to the fancy car wash place to get the outside scrubbed and the upholstery vacuumed. Ahhh and it feels amazing.
This all seems like a silly cycle. Leslie, why can’t you just keep your car at a normal level of clean all the time? Why do you have to reach that “it-is-so-disgusting-where-is-that-smell-coming-from” level of mess before you take action?
It would be so much simpler if I just did a little every day. If I just brought my morning coffee cup into my apartment at the end of the day. If I emptied all the trash every time I filled up the tank, it wouldn’t pile up to an embarrassing amount. Simple solutions, and consistent every day acts.
What if the car was my health?
We tend to wait until our health is out of control. Maybe we get sick and are required to change our nutrition habits. Maybe we get injured and realize a weakness we have been compensating for has finally caught up with us. Maybe it’s even a number on the scale we never thought we’d be staring at. Or, it’s that tenth greasy meal in a row that makes you realize something has got to shift.
Whatever your line is, get rid of the guilt you feel from reaching that line in the first place. Ask for help, hit a reset button, and commit to consistent daily acts toward health and wellness.
I can always start over and clean my car, but we all know that the “new car smell” has long disappeared and will never return. I can’t quite ever get it all back to a spotless starting point. With your health, it can also be difficult to get to a fresh starting point, and the repercussions are much greater than just some extra grime in your car. There’s no magic pill and no cleanse that will replace consistent, daily efforts to fuel your body in the way it craves and to oil your joints through physical movement.
So I am asking you, where is your line? If you’re already there, it’s okay. Forgive yourself and ask for help. We can help clean out your car together.
If you’re not at your limit yet, ask yourself, are you taking daily steps toward this messy line? We’re here with a roadmap in hand to point you in the right direction when you’re ready.
Safe & Happy Travels,
Coach Leslie
