This afternoon I got a call from my Fella. It’s not unusual for him to call that time of day. Sometimes he’ll call to see if we need him to pick up anything on his way home from work. But today, that was not his reason.
The gas gauge is broken in his vehicle. Well, broken is a strong term. Occasionally it works, only you are hesitant to trust it, because what if it’s not? So maybe malfunctioning is a better term. His gas gauge is malfunctioning.
He called because he had “broken down” right after leaving his office. Less than five minutes up the road. He thought it might be that he was out of gas, but then again, he wasn’t sure. He hoped that’s all it was.
Me too.
The funny thing is he’s always so conscientious about filling up regularly because he never knows exactly how much gas he has left. “The one time I let down my OCD about filling up the tank…..”
We picked him up and did all that needed to happen to get gas back to his vehicle where it was stuck on the side of the road. He poured in the gas and then tried to start it up.
Perfect.
Thankfully, that was the issue. He closed his gas cap, and we were all on our way again. Back to the day to dailies and taking care of business as usual.
Three things occurred to me as I was driving to my next adventure:
*We do this ourselves, don’t we? We think we know how much “gas” we have left to get us through all we need to do, but sometimes we misjudge or we push the limit, and then we burn out.
*When we do run out of gas, patience and grace are the two things we need the most from those around us. When those around us run out of gas, that’s the best thing we can give them–patience and grace. (This observation is in *ahem* retrospect. I might not have been the best giver of these things today, and I’m sorry for that.)
*It takes help from others to get us going again–we just need to ask. Whether that comes in the form of a friend who sits and listens, someone who makes sure we rest and take care of ourselves, or someone who has our back and fends off the gas-guzzlers, we need the support and presence of others to get back up and running again.
Tonight I’m thankful for a vehicle that runs. And for the Fella making his day interruptible, so I could do what I needed to do after the refueling. I’m glad that an empty gas tank was the worst of our worries today. That’s not something we can say everyday.
Wishing you all a full tank and the rest to refuel when it’s not.
Love to all.
I Might Need A Nap 