Do you ever find yourself looking at a car’s vanity plates? I do and even have one of them on my own vehicle. While there are a ton of reasons why someone might get a vanity plate, for the car I drive regularly, my using one is quite specific.
Currently, mine says “DNTJDGE”, which of course is “Don’t Judge” and I’m sure many probably think when they see it, that it’s me pointing the finger at everyone else. While it is as much my wish that none of us judged anyone or anything in this world, I actually have this plate on my car as a constant reminder for myself because I’m not innocent either. There have been times when I’ve been doing exactly the opposite of what my plate says when suddenly someone has casually pointed to the seven letters stamped on it.
On the other side of the coin, I’d like to also say that having this plate has come in handy for others on their own spiritual journeys in life too. Take for example a truck that pulled up beside me one day where its driver yelled over and said, “Thanks for the great reminder!” When I asked what he was referring to, he said my vanity plate, because he had been getting irritated at another driver a short bit earlier. So I’ve come to appreciate having my license plate say what it does, not only because it seems to be helping me, but it seems to be helping others as well.
Prior to having this plate, I should also mention I’ve had “PSLM23”, “BURSLF”, and a few others on my cars over the years as well. All were important reminders of lessons I was trying to learn in life at the times they were on my vehicle. And as an added bonus, it’s helped some others along the way too.
While I know there are plenty out there who probably use vanity plates on their daily vehicles specifically for that, vanity, I’ve chosen to have a message on my own day-to-day car that can help me on my spiritual journey. And while I’m sure at some point I’ll get a new vanity plate down the road, I know in the meantime there’s still some work for me to do on myself when it comes to judging, which is exactly why my plate says “DNTJDGE”.
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson