Killing Time?

In my conversations around town a troubling phrase keeps coming up. More than five people in the last week have mentioned that they did one thing or another to "kill" time while they were waiting for something to happen. Killing time? I know that I have said this on a few rare occasions but it seemed odd and a bit alarming that so many people are not using their time to the best of their abilities.

We all have those short stretches of time where we are waiting to move from one mode to another. The question is - How can we use even those teeny, tiny times to our advantage?

Waiting for appointments? Have a folder of things you really want to read, not just what is supplied in the waiting rooms. It is also a time to read/sort mail.

Sitting in traffic? Consider a good book on CD/TAPE/MP3. Check your local library for titles to borrow. Also, check iTunes for their free selections.

Watching TV? What hobby or activity could you pick up to make that time more fruitful? Maybe even a time for exercise(?!)

Whenever your bits of wasted time occur, it is possible to take back your time and use it well. If you don't use your time, it WILL be wasted... and we all know just how valuable time really is!

Wishing... then doing!

I wish that I could say that my house is perfect, that my children are angels and that my life is bliss. Yes, my life is great but it is a REAL life with ups and downs. At this very second I can hear my three year old crying downstairs because she doesn't want to help my husband pick up the messes she has made today. Yes, messes do happen... even in an organizer's home.

My family is about to take a huge step out into the unknown. My husband's job is ending in June and we don't know where we are going yet. My business is growing but it doesn't feed us and house us quite yet. I find myself wishing a lot these days. Wishing for stability, wishing for someone else to pack my moving boxes for me, wishing for it to be a year from now instead of right now. Today it occurred to me. I have to stop wishing and just start doing. "Inch by inch, life is a cinch. right?"

So what am I doing? I am being faithful to the processes that I know and always try to use. Maybe they will be helpful to you too.

Sort and open my mail each day
Do my best to answer and delete email each day
Keep up with the laundry
Make the beds - even when I don't feel like it
Start everyday by looking at the calendar and making sure I have a "flight plan"
Buy only the things that I really need
Avoid food that is neon-colored or clearly not "real" food
Pray or be still at least once each day
Shower, no matter what!
Be thankful about something and/or someone... then let him/her know about it
End the day with a clean(ish) desk
Always have extra batteries... and a secret stash of cookies
Get enough protein (hard since I am a veggie)
Try not to be "grouchy mommy"
Clean out the refrigerator once a week
Still have a date night with my husband
Ask for help (that one is really hard for me)
Love myself more
Listen to others more
Cut out the things that don't really matter to me (or the ones I love)
Drive slower
Listen to music as much as possible
Read something everyday (even if it is only a few moments in the bathroom)
Give my things away to those who really need them
Smile... even when I am by myself
Trust what is to come....
.... Julian of Norwich was right -
"All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well"

New Year's... and a new year.

I think that resolutions should be made on some random Tuesday in May. It seems like they are more viable than those that are made in the midst of holiday overeating, charged up credit cards and snowed-out exercise plans. Thinking about retooling my life each year stirs up feelings of failure, not dreams of relief.

So what do I do?

I make a promise to be gentle to myself. My natural tendency is the work myself to death. I guess that comes from my Pennsylvania Dutch (German) background. It is actually a true exercise of all my skills to do nothing.

So what does it mean to be gentle to myself?
Finding a pace that keeps me happy, engaged, and moving forward in my life.

Most of what we resolve has to do with "problems" in our pace of living . So why not do what all good doctors do - treat the root issue and NOT simply mask the symptoms.

How will you change your pace this year? What would it mean to be gentle to yourself?
Why not try it today.

Making Good Choices

The new PC ways we talk to kids really get under my skin sometimes. I am guilty of it - I know but some are way more out of control that I am.

I am known to call after McKenzie to "be a good friend" as she is heading onto the crowded bus in the morning. ... the the one that really gets me is "make good choices". When parents and teachers say that I want to scccreeeaaaaaammmm.

The truth remains. We all need to be reminded to make good choices. Most of our clutter desks, dirty dishes, unpaid bills and lapsed commitments are a direct result of NOT making good choices. The very nature of choice-making means that something is a "yes" and another thing is a "no". This is not easy for most of us. What you say "yes" or "no" to this week that will make a difference is your living? Start now - make that good choice today.

Putting it where it is used the most

I should really follow my own advice. If I had a penny for each of the times I have said "put this where you are really going to use it", I would be typing this from a remote location off the coast of somewhere lovely, sunny and tropical.

This morning was my day to follow my own advice. Normally I keep the vitamins in the hall closet to store them out of view. ...But guess what happens?! I never take them because I forget. This is also true of my prayer life. All my "tools" are out of sight it in my home office. Guess what also happens?! My prayer life has been almost nonexistent. (UGH!)

This was the day for change.
I have placed a basket on top of the upstairs toilet with all my vitamins and a few morning devotional books placed inside. Now it will be in view and used.

It is good to follow the advice you offer to others. It keeps you honest.

Good advice for us all...

I am sitting at my computer... well, I am actually sitting at the computer in my local library since my wireless is "less-than-wireless" at the current moment. The task at hand is to finish an action plan for a client needing to recapture her living spaces. As I outline the steps of what she should do, I remember the tears shed during the in-home consultation.

The opening advice I offered before the actual steps were listed is this:

Honor the fact that this is hard work to let go of things.
Be generous with yourself.
*Remember that it is possible to honor feelings and memories without keeping the stuff.*

I hope this is a helpful starting place for you too.
What is stored away in your space that can really be let go of today?

My favorite things...

Have you ever heard anything that made you laugh out loud without being able to catch yourself? The backseat of my minivan is either filled with kids or filled with client donation drop offs. The other day a neighborhood child was sitting in the back talking about her favorite things.

Raindrops on roses?
and whiskers on kittens?
Those might be Maria's favorite things from the Sound of Music
but for this little girl, her favorite things were -

Unicorns
Cocker Spaniels
...and pickles.

Something about that grouping made me laugh and laugh. Then it started me thinking... what random collection of things do I love? How about you... what do you love?