My cousin, a connoisseur of the finer things in life, always takes time to put her sunglasses back in their case, regardless of what is going on. Every time I get a new pair of sunglasses, within weeks they end up scratched.
Because I had lasik surgery some years ago, my eyes are very sensitive to sunlight, causing me to wear my sunglasses even on the cloudiest of days. So they get abused as I place them on my head to enter stores, slip them into my shirt to answer a text or throw them on the counter as I walk into the house.
I realize now that the problem is not the glasses or the case. The problem is that I need to take the *time* to put the glasses in the case. Time – yup – that’s the problem.
I’m a rusher. I move quickly from one activity to another, constantly weighing how much time is left to get everything done on my daily to-do list. Subconsciously, I guess the 30 seconds needed to put away my sunglasses was too great a risk to staying on my self-inflicted schedule.
As I pondered this, it hit me: if caring for my sunglasses is too much, what other things, what other people, am I neglecting? As I come home, do I warmly greet everyone? Do I take a needed mental hygiene break to recalibrate and breathe? Am I so focused on getting things done, that I’m leaving scratches in my wake?
So, everytime I’m tempted to toss my glasses aside, I see my cousin in my mind’s eye, and put my sunglasses away — along with my predisposition to rush.
