How many of you take your cell phone with you everywhere? (I know, stupid question, but I was trying to make a point.) We all have a tendency to run our errands while yakking away on our cell phones. Walking through the parking lot on our way into the Piggly Wiggly while we talk to our honey about what groceries we need. Chatting with our BFF while we cross the mall parking lot, excited about the big sale at Kohl's. I know cell phones are miraculous and all that, but can you seriously tell me RIGHT NOW without turning around - where did you park? That's what I thought. You were so busy telling your mom about your doctor's appointment last week that you jumped out of your car and started walking. You didn't look around to see where you were parked, who might be near you, or if you were under a light. Are you even sure you locked the car?
Gals, we are all guilty of it. We are so engrossed in the conversation we are having that we forget to pay attention to our surroundings. And it's not just because we're talking on our cell. We lead busy lives. Women are the Queens of Multi-Tasking. We may be walking into the dentist office now, but in our heads we are planning our 8 year old's birthday party while making a grocery list. It's just what we do. But all that Multi-Tasking makes Molly miss many more important moments. (Say THAT three times fast!)Let's take a closer look at an average afternoon for Molly:
She pulls into the mall parking lot, talking to her child's teacher on her cell phone. It's almost 6:00 in the evening, so it will most likely be dark when Molly comes out. She is so concerned about her daughter's low math grade that she aimlessly circles the parking lot until she spots any open parking space. She glances at the clock on the dash and thinks, "Dang! I've got to hurry or dinner is going to be REALLY late!" She jumps out of the car, still on the phone, and dashes into the store. 
Unbeknownst to Multi-Tasking Molly, Rapist Rob was sitting in his beat up cargo van just a few parking spots away. He watched with interest while Molly parked and ran into the store. He noted that Molly was so engrossed in her phone conversation that she forgot to lock her car doors. While Molly was shopping, Rapist Rob waited patiently. When the car next to Molly left, he pulled into that spot - putting his big ol' cargo van door right next to Molly's driver's side. As dark fell, he quietly slipped out through the cargo door, leaving it slightly ajar, and slid right into Molly's back seat.
Now 45 minutes later, Molly emerges with 2 shopping bags, and stands on the sidewalk thinking, "Shoot, where did I park?" Spotting her car in the far corner, she starts across the parking lot. Juggling her 2 shopping bags and the soda she bought in the food court, she begins rummaging in her purse for her keys. She pulls them out just as she reaches her car door and opens it.
I think we all know what happens next...Now if Molly had just paid a little more attention, this whole scenario could have played out differently. Sure Molly's conversation with her daughter's teacher was important! But she should have sat in her car, with the doors locked, and finished that important conversation. Then when she got out of the car, she would have remembered to lock her doors, and would have made a point to note to herself where she parked.
When she emerged from the store, before she ever stepped off the sidewalk, she should have gathered all of her bags on her non-dominant arm while holding her keys (which she had already retrieved) in her dominant hand - car key and alarm button at the ready. That would have left her undistracted so that as she walked towards her vehicle she would have noticed that big beat up ol' suspicious looking cargo van that is now parked next to her. She would have had a chance to think to herself, "That van gives me the creeps." which would have raised her level of awareness. Then she would have been more diligent in scanning under her car and in the backseat instead of obliviously climbing in to the waiting arms of Rapist Rob.
What's the moral of today's story, ladies? AWARENESS! Get out of that foggy white zone you are running your errands in, and step up to a level of Awareness of your Surroundings. Survivor - it's not just a TV show anymore.
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