It is gray outside my window this morning. After a week of school vacation, we are getting ourselves back into the normal routine. Day two of back to school and the kids were rather sluggish heading out the door. And it is not just them; I am feeling rather sluggish myself.
Maybe I am tired from spending the past three days on a massive house cleaning effort. Or because I got up at 5am this morning to exercise (before you decide to be impressed, you should know this is a once a week effort). I can say for sure that the gray sky and damp air is not helping.
As I sit and reflect on feeling tired, I realize that I may be dragging my feet because of the schedule I have planned for myself over the next week. I could blame technology and the fact that my phone calendar and my desktop computer calendar have been failing to sync.
This morning, I sat down at the computer with my phone in hand and put the two calendars side by side. Miraculously, I had not double-booked myself. What I did find, however, was that I have scheduled something every night for the next eight nights.
Did I mention that my calendar has also been failing to sync with my husband’s? Yup, so this was all news to him. I can tell you that it didn’t go over all that well.
As someone who consciously works to under-schedule my family, being booked for this many evenings makes me uncomfortable. Here I am feeling weary before having even started.
As I look at my calendar, I realize that as individual events, I am looking forward to each one. There is nothing that I want to cancel or wish I had said NO to. The rest of March is pretty quiet - I just managed to pack a lot into the first eight days.
I suspect that this is an opportunity for me to practice pacing myself - taking each event as it comes, and allowing it to be the only event. It makes me think of the book The Three Questions by John Muth. The young boy in the story wonders how to know what is the most important thing. He seeks out the counsel of the wise, old turtle. As events unfold, the boy’s answers come from his own actions, and he ultimately discovers that the most important thing is that which is here now.
So, I, too, will follow the counsel of Leo, the old turtle. I will be present with the quiet, gray day that lies before me. I will move slowly as my body is asking. I will do the things that need to get done today.
I hear the birds chirping outside my window. The day doesn't seem as dreary now.
I am telling myself that I will save thinking about driving into Cambridge at rush hour for tomorrow...can you tell that I am not thinking about it right now? Ha!
Always a work in progress…
How far ahead has your mind gotten today? How might it be helpful to focus on that which is here now?
Maybe I am tired from spending the past three days on a massive house cleaning effort. Or because I got up at 5am this morning to exercise (before you decide to be impressed, you should know this is a once a week effort). I can say for sure that the gray sky and damp air is not helping.
As I sit and reflect on feeling tired, I realize that I may be dragging my feet because of the schedule I have planned for myself over the next week. I could blame technology and the fact that my phone calendar and my desktop computer calendar have been failing to sync.
This morning, I sat down at the computer with my phone in hand and put the two calendars side by side. Miraculously, I had not double-booked myself. What I did find, however, was that I have scheduled something every night for the next eight nights.
Did I mention that my calendar has also been failing to sync with my husband’s? Yup, so this was all news to him. I can tell you that it didn’t go over all that well.
As someone who consciously works to under-schedule my family, being booked for this many evenings makes me uncomfortable. Here I am feeling weary before having even started.
As I look at my calendar, I realize that as individual events, I am looking forward to each one. There is nothing that I want to cancel or wish I had said NO to. The rest of March is pretty quiet - I just managed to pack a lot into the first eight days.
I suspect that this is an opportunity for me to practice pacing myself - taking each event as it comes, and allowing it to be the only event. It makes me think of the book The Three Questions by John Muth. The young boy in the story wonders how to know what is the most important thing. He seeks out the counsel of the wise, old turtle. As events unfold, the boy’s answers come from his own actions, and he ultimately discovers that the most important thing is that which is here now.
So, I, too, will follow the counsel of Leo, the old turtle. I will be present with the quiet, gray day that lies before me. I will move slowly as my body is asking. I will do the things that need to get done today.
I hear the birds chirping outside my window. The day doesn't seem as dreary now.
I am telling myself that I will save thinking about driving into Cambridge at rush hour for tomorrow...can you tell that I am not thinking about it right now? Ha!
Always a work in progress…
How far ahead has your mind gotten today? How might it be helpful to focus on that which is here now?
 | Jessica Curtis is a professional life coach who helps people cultivate intention and live from a place of meaning and authenticity. If you think you could benefit from working with Jessica or want to invite her to work with your group, reach out to start a conversation. |
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