Day 125: Autopilot Mishaps

 

Yuck! 

This was my Saturday night. I went to my friend Sam's house for a chill dinner hangout. 

"They sprayed my apartment for cockroaches recently, so I've been seeing a lot more as they come out to die," Sam shared with me.

I didn't think much of this - seemed reasonable to me. We live in a city, afterall. 

We barely registered the daylight's slow disappearance until we went to the kitchen for water.

That's where it happened.

Where I saw something on the ground, immediately assumed it was food, reached down and picked it up.

It was not food.

I didn't know that until after my friend told me - which was also after I felt the wet squishy-ness between my fingers.

I had been running on autopilot.

This gross experience is a PERFECT illustration of what living on autopilot is like - and results in.

Imagine going through life in the dark - you know, like a kitchen with no west facing window, at dusk.

You can make things out around you, but it's not super clear, and there are a lot of assumptions flying about. 

In autopilot, it often feels you're at the mercy of whatever situation or circumstance you find yourself in. It can seem like you don't have much choice or control over what comes your way in life.

But there's one way to change all of this.

Turn on the light.

To turn on the light is to drop assumptions, try on different perspectives, and check your self-awareness.

It may sound like a lot, but really it's not. Turning on the light can start with something as simple as a question. Such as . . .

But how do I know it's a piece of food?

Don't be like me.

Avoid picking up cockroaches. Take the short pause needed to make sure you can really see.