Dude, Where's My Spaceship?

This week I swapped cars with my Dad.  
Not because I wanted to, but because my minivan (aka "the spaceship") can seat seven comfortably and we had aunts and uncles in town.

{My 2004 Nissan Quest's doppelgänger. Stop drooling.}

Maybe it's the years gaining on me, but I swear I find myself still looking for my silver spaceship in a parking lot when I logically know that the keys in my hand clearly are linked to Dad's blue Ford Escape.

{My Dad's Ford Escape's twin}

The truth of the matter is, we're all creatures of habit and if left to our own devices, would probably keep our same routines.You simply get used to doing things the same way because they bring stability and a certain level of comfort (or said another way, control) to your life. In fact, isn't that why they say to establish routines with kids? So they know what to anticipate next and feel more comfortable and in control of their surroundings?

This little car-swapping experience really made me think about other routines in life. And how we can unknowingly and unintentionally slowly get sucked into a rut, believing that we have control because we keep doing something the same way, over and over again.

This is where you run into danger, because by always sticking with the tried and true, never deviating from the norm nor coloring outside the lines you cheat yourself, little by little, of having a richer experience, gaining a new perspective and broadening your horizons.

Sometimes that new perspective is everything. Driving my Dad's car gave me a new vantage point — I'm literally sitting up higher, seeing things from a different point of view. Sure, the ride is a little bumpier, and I have to be aware of finessing my speed and direction to get to where I want to go, but isn't that what life's all about?

This experience has inspired to move outside my comfort zone to try new lots of new things. Heck, I may even take a new route home.  Just as soon as I find my car.

{P.S. — Don't think the irony of the cars' model names didn't (forgive the pun) escape me, given my personal transformative journey.}