Toothbrush.

I reach for my toothbrush sitting in the bright pink cup to the left of my sink.

I then grab the tube of toothpaste, remove the cap, and squirt a small amount of the gel onto the bristles of my toothbrush.

I run some water over the brush, and then I start to brush my teeth.

Patience leaves me about 4 seconds in when I realize how badly my hair needs to be brushed. I hold the toothbrush between my teeth and begin to brush my tangled hair. I soon notice that I never finished brushing my teeth, and put my hairbrush down.

Another 7 seconds go by, and I notice that my mirror is looking atrocious and needs to be cleaned. Once again, I hold the toothbrush between my teeth, and grab a paper towel. Right before I get the mirror to really shine, I remember my teeth, which have yet to be brushed completely. I throw the paper towel away and start brushing again.

13 seconds later, I shove the toothbrush between my teeth and hurry into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. If I don’t start it now, it won’t be ready by the time I head out the door, and as a result, I will be late for class. After pouring the last bit of water into the pot and shutting the lid, I go back into my bathroom and continue brushing my teeth like I hadn’t been interrupted.

After 5 seconds, I look around and see that I haven’t picked out clothes for the day. I clench the toothbrush between my teeth, and race into my bedroom frantically throwing clothes around. I find a shirt, and in an attempt to take off the one I already have on, jab the toothbrush upwards into my gum. I sigh loudly—disappointed that I forgot about the toothbrush, but also because it slightly hurt when I knocked it into my gums.

Finally, I walk a defeated walk back into the bathroom. I finish up the job I started minutes ago, spit, rinse out my mouth, then put the toothbrush back into the bright pink cup to the left of my sink. It will rest there until this evening, when I start this distracted process all over again.

Side tracked would be the word I would use to describe my morning experience. I cannot focus on completing the task at hand. Instead, I am looking on to the next step in the routine. Although I might get a lot done during my 12-minute tooth brushing, I don’t think it’s the most efficient way of “multitasking.”

Distractions seem to be in my way a lot. Whether it be refreshing my twitter feed while I should be writing a paper for my Diagnostics class or digging through my purse trying to find my tube of chapstick while driving to school, I'm constantly becoming distracted.

I can’t finish what I’m doing without looking ahead to the next thing. Instead of only focusing on right now, I focus on what’s coming up. Yes, looking forward is great as you walk down the path; however, if you never look down at what you’re doing, you will trip on the rocks in the road.

Needless to say, I trip a lot.

An overused phrase that still holds much truth is the excerpt from Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken.”

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, 
I took the one less traveled by,
 And that has made all the difference.”

By all means, take the road less traveled by! Whichever path you choose, pay attention to what you’re doing, where you’re going and enjoy the scenery on the way.

My biggest fear is ending up somewhere great, and not knowing how I got there. Like accepting an award, but not knowing who to think simply because you never took the time to see who was helping you. Or riding in the car to Colorado and never looking up from your book—you arrive at the destination, yet you missed the entire journey. Is the journey not part of the destination? I wholeheartedly want to enjoy both the journey and the destination.

And how does this apply to brushing my teeth? Well, every morning I'm so consumed with what needs to be checked off my list that I literally cannot do the things that are necessary. I want to begin my day, but I cannot until I brush my teeth. Something so simple that would only take 2 minutes of my day, takes much longer because I'm distracted with other simple things. 

I must learn to do one thing at a time. 

I must also learn to be present. I do so many tasks halfheartedly, simply because I am thinking of something else. I think we are all guilty of that sometimes, and need to work on what we allow ourselves to focus on. 

Brushing my teeth without being distracted is on my agenda for tomorrow morning.