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Cleansing

I change my own oil in the vehicles I own. It's something I take pride in, because it makes the owning and maintaining of a vehicle more real. I also save a little money, which appeals to me. I am sure there will come a time when I am not interested in crawling around under my cars any more. But for now, I like it.

There is inevitably, though, a time when I get oil on my hands. Despite my best efforts - and I haven't ever gotten a face full of oil - there is always a moment when the oil first spurts out from the drain hole that my hand somehow gets coated with the oil.

It's really not very much, but the problem with oil is that it's dirty and it somehow sinks into the skin, seeming to seek out the crevices and cracks that are otherwise invisible. Now, I know I haven't the most manly of hands, and I do like to have clean hands. So when the oil makes my hands dirty and greasy, I can't wait to wash it off. I've tried using gloves before to keep the oil off, but they invariably break and end up being less useful than they would seem.

I wipe off as much as I can on a dirty oil rag, then I go inside. Dishwashing soap generally works the best for oily messes, and soon my hands are almost back to normal. Yet, somehow, no matter how much I scrub, there are some areas of remaining dirt/oil.

One day several years ago, my son grabbed my hand and noticed the left over oil in my skin. He said - dad, didn't you wash your hands? Yes, son. I did.

Well, why is it still dirty?

Sometimes, it just takes a little more time to get the dirt out. The bulk of the dirty gets washed away quickly, but there is a little that stays and looks dirty, reminding me of what I did. It takes time, but eventually even that will be cleared away.

Just need a little time.

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