To quote musician Mark Knopfler, "Sometimes you're the windshield; sometimes you're the bug."
I thought of this quote as I drove into work the other day. One of my many idiosyncrasies is I hate a dirty windshield in an automobile. This time of year with all of the bugs can be a bane to my existence. I keep my windshield washer fluid reserve busy squirting and removing all of the bug carcasses as I crash into them traveling the roadways.
My wife and child took my vehicle to see her parents the other day in Paragould. When they returned, naturally the windshield was covered in dead bugs. When I drove the car for the first time after their trip, I used the elbow grease of washer fluid and windshield wipers to scrape as much of the goo off as I could. With the daily rains we have been having, I figured the remaining bug bodies would be washed away in short order.
For the most part, I was correct. All of the decomposing dragonflies washed away save one. One bullheaded beetle did not want to give up the ghost, literally. His remains clung to my windshield no matter how many rainstorms I drove through or how much wiper fluid I sprayed. He was going nowhere.
As I scrubbed away the mulish mud dauber with some Windex, I could not help but metaphorically think that this little creature showed true resilience. He had been smacked in the face at over 70 mph but he hung in there. He had been inundated with torrential downpours of rain while simultaneously being slapped across the face with a piece of rubber repeatedly, yet still he clung. He had been drowned with windshield wiper fluid but still he held out.
In Mr. Knopfler's statement, the windshield is cast as the winner. Sure, the little bug did not do any permanent damage to the big bad windshield but he hung in there for as long as he could. He made me notice him every time I drove my car. He forced me to put in the extra effort to remove him from my life. That my friends is the definition of persistence.
So hang in there on the days you feel like the bug. Yeah, you were smacked around but you are still in the fight.
You may be thinking there is no way I can beat that windshield. Sure maybe it cannot be beaten but you sure can make an impression on it. That little bit of change could be all it takes for the windshield to rethink their attitude of being a belligerent bug basher.
The one thing we all know for sure is life changes and the sun will shine again. Do not fret if you feel like the bug right now because your turn as the windshield is right around the corner.
I do not think Mr. Knopfler took into account how tough you really are. Because if he knew you his quote would probably read, "Sometimes you're the windshield; sometimes you're the bug. But oftentimes you are the rock."