When I drove my son to cross country practice early this morning, I noticed my “low tire” light. I came home to finish getting ready for work and once there, got the portable air compressor out of the trunk. Now my husband would have been glad to air up my tire for me, but to be honest, I kind of enjoy doing basic car maintenance. Let me clarify – I enjoy only the most basic of car maintenance: washing my car, putting gas in my car, refilling the washer wiper fluid, airing up the tires…yep, that’s it. But that tiny little venture into car repair is fun for me.
This morning I hooked up the air compressor to the tire valve and while it was working (it is a small unit that takes awhile) I stood there in the garage and applied my eye shadow. I imagine I was a funny sight to any of my neighbors: standing beside my car looking into a hand mirror so I could make sure I was precise with my eyeliner and all that while the loud air compressor was hard at work to refill the air in my tire. I am also sure that I was probably making those funny distorted faces that women make to make sure that their eyes are open as much as possible when they are working in the tiny areas above and below their eyelashes. Granted, I didn’t have the car up on a lift changing the oil or anything major, but I was taking care of my car and putting on makeup. It made me smile to think that I was a funny compilation of personality traits in that moment – industrious, independent, resourceful, with a little bit of healthy vanity thrown in. And I couldn’t help but keep smiling in liking myself exactly that way.
Today (and tomorrow, and the next day, and the next…) be who you are – and enjoy it. Bring a smile to your own face and it makes it a lot easier to put a smile on someone else’s.
