On Clarity

Last night, I cleaned my windshield. The inside was filthy - it had that thin film of yick on it that doesn't go away when you blow the defroster, so everything glares funny and affects your depth perception.  You know what I mean, right?

The project reminded me of a story told by President Monson. You can read the whole talk here, if you like.

"A young couple, Lisa and John, moved into a new neighborhood. One morning while they were eating breakfast, Lisa looked out the window and watched her next-door neighbor hanging out her wash. 'That laundry’s not clean!' Lisa exclaimed. 'Our neighbor doesn’t know how to get clothes clean!' John looked on but remained silent. Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, Lisa would make the same comments. A few weeks later Lisa was surprised to glance out her window and see a nice, clean wash hanging in her neighbor’s yard. She said to her husband, 'Look, John—she’s finally learned how to wash correctly! I wonder how she did it.' John replied, 'Well, dear, I have the answer for you. You’ll be interested to know that I got up early this morning and washed our windows!'”

The story makes me laugh. The clarity provided by simply washing my windshield makes me think. If a little scrubbing on a window makes that big a difference (and makes night driving that much safer), it must be a very good thing to spend a little time cleaning off the windows of our perspective every once in a while. It would help us avoid judging others unfairly because of our own faults, fears, or bad experiences. It is a choice that provides spiritual safety.