The price of gas in the Vancouver area, during the year we’ve been here has varied between $1.35 to $1.60 per litre. It changes all the time. During the day I’ve seen it go up and down. One of our local supermarkets sometimes gives out $.05 off a litre. Well…. I fully admit that I like a bargain and gas, even after a year here still seems really expensive to me. It’s close to $80 to fill our car.

Last week I got one of those coupons and our car was nearly empty so I offered, when I was going to be in town, to get it filled with this precious bit of liquid gold. My husband had warned me that the local station that filled the coupon the last time didn’t seem to actually fill it. He hadn’t fussed with them but just accepted the bill. So warned, I headed into the gas station. I knew to use the coupon I had to chat with the attendant first. When I showed him my coupon he said, “Of course, just fill up your card here first and then pump the gas.” For some reason my intuitive brain couldn’t absorb his explanation. I had to give him my credit card, let him charge me $100.00 and then go outside and fill up my car. Oh, my brain got into a knot over that.

I did as he told me. I gave him $100 on my credit card and then filled up my car to cost of nearly $80.00. When the receipt came out it said that each litre had cost $1.44. Somehow that seemed just too expensive to me. I went back in and asked him about it. I pointed to the high cost of gas on my bill and asked about it being $.05 less. He gently looked at me and then pointed me to the sign over the driveway. The gas cost $1.49/litre. I had received the discount I was so intent on. I had saved the $2.00. He looked at me, gently smiled and said, “Life is too short.” Oh, that landed right in my heart. There was no condemnation. There was nothing but a lift out of the swamp of bargain pursuit, into the land of ease, presence and priority.

Life is short. How shall I spend it? Pursuing .05 savings or investing with others? Ah… how easy it can be for me to be derailed. How grateful I am for the gas attendant that pointed me back to the pathway of life-giving LIFE. A little while later when someone was angry with me I knew life was too short to stay in anger and could move easily into wishing them well.

How about you? Life IS short. What are you pursuing? How are you living?

If this is helpful to you, please share with a friend, so we can broaden the contemplative pathway. 

Love and prayers

Anne

Mystic in Motion

Companion on the Way with Contemplative Fire

Contemplative Fire Canada, Founder