Minus 10 Prime Parking Spaces

Two things:

1.) I need to exercise my body more.
2.) I need to exercise my patience more.

I believe this can be accomplished in a parking lot.

Like a scene from an old western, I watched as the driver of the car opposite me squinted his eyes, gripped his fingers around his steering wheel, and slammed the gas pedal so hard smoke and squeals could be seen and heard miles away. All so he could fly into the parking space I had been patiently waiting for. (The nerve.)

I admit, it got under my skin. Isn't there proper parking lot protocol that says, "He who waits gets the space?" And that's when I realized I was getting upset because someone obviously really, really, really needed this space more than I did. Maybe he had a good reason. Maybe he didn't.

Perhaps there had been times when proper parking lot protocol had been followed and I got the prime spot... causing an elderly man to walk further than he should have to. Or a mother to have to guide her three toddlers through a maze of holiday parking hell longer than she would like to. Or a student getting over a sprained ankle wishing he could drive right up to the pharmacy counter for his pain medication rather than walk this far through an icy lot.

And what's so wrong with walking anyway? It makes your body move. It allows you to breathe in fresh air. It gives you a second to just walk, perhaps thinking nothing at all.

The challenge this week is "Minus 10 Prime Parking Spaces." Consciously decide to give up the 10 best parking spaces for someone else to use. Pass by 10 empty spaces in one aisle and walk to the store. Give your mind a break and allow your legs to work. Avoid the gunfighter drama and just drive by. Take ten deep breaths on your way in to the store, and another ten on the way back to your car. Trust me, it'll be worth it.