Getting dirty...

When I was on the track team in junior high, there was this girl on the team who would always show up to practice- 10 minutes late, of course- dressed in the nicest, cleanest, newest- matching, of course- running outfits purchased by her mother at The Sports Authority. I remember the first time I saw her through my legs as I was leaned over stretching, thinking that she wouldn't last the season. I was right.

I was trippin' on the quote I posted yesterday more this evening when I thought of that girl. When you show up for some gut-busting, sweaty, hardcore training, you don't come in looking perfect. If you do, then your focus is most assuredly in the wrong place. This is how I see the people whom Martha Beck was referring to in her quote. The ones who focus on having the perfect house, the perfect spouse, the perfect kids, the perfect job. If you're that focused on how things look, there is no energy left over for the important things- the living, the loving, the raising, the working. Life is uphill and all-terrain. You gotta show up on time and focused on what's important. And ready to get dirty.

This then reminded me of my favorite story in the book, The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. He told of how he stopped by to pick up his niece and nephew in his new sports car one afternoon. His sister, their mom, told them sternly as he waited that they were not to mess up their uncle's new car. As she was instructing them on the importance of treating things with respect, the kids tried not to laugh as they watched Randy pouring a full can of soda onto the backseat, smiling the whole time. His point was obviously to make a very clear argument that things are not what is important. He said that later in the day his nephew did not feel guilty when he got sick and threw up in the backseat.

Next time you go to polish your showpiece, whether it's your sports car or your life, remember that life is a hands-on sport and if you don't get dirty, you're not doing it right.


Life isn't perfect; get dirty.