Catching Up
March 2, 2007
Lately I’ve had a nasty feeling shadowing me.
You know the one. That headache you get from the laundry basket overflowing with clean, unfolded laundry, a full week of unopened mail stacked on the desk, the three shirts that need buttons sewn back on, and the church nursery schedule that should have been filled out two weeks ago.
Help! I’ve fallen behind, and I can’t catch up!
I calm down, remind myself that tomorrow is another day, but as it turns out, it’s just another day to fall behind. More mail joins the stack, the shirts still need buttons, the laundry is half-folded (who needs matched socks, anyway), and now I must decide — do I go grocery shopping so we can eat or fill out that nursery schedule?
Add to it the overflowing hamper, the bathroom that needs cleaning, and the writing cloud hanging over my head because I’m three weeks behind the writing deadline I’ve already moved back once.
Don’t you hate days like that?
I don’t like having to choose something important to sacrifice. I dislike feeling as if I’m doing a little bit of everything and doing none of it well. I’d like to discover that it is possible to accomplish everything that matters — and still have some sanity at the end of the day.
You, too?
Last summer I began to wonder if I should put my fiction writing on hold until my kids were grown and gone. I prayed about it, asked God if, gulp, that was what He wanted, and asked Him to show me what to do.
Less than a week later, He sent a book across my path that showed me that disorganization was the center of my struggles. There was no set pattern to my days, no schedule as to when things should be done. I was reinventing the wheel every single day.
Over the summer I took the book to heart. Within a week, I found time freed up, items where they belonged, the weekends free to goof off with my family, and my home neater even though I cleaned less. That nagging weight of falling farther and farther behind vanished.
Wow.
And then I busied myself with a rewrite on my novel. I thought I’d finish it in a few short weeks, so I dropped everything I’d learned to concentrate on the book.
Big mistake.
I fell back to old habits of deciding what must be sacrificed, what could wait, and what needed immediate attention, and now that nasty feeling has returned. I don’t like it. I want to go back to the things I learned. I want to grab that peace and order again.
Maybe you want that, too. If so, climb on board with me. Over the next several months, I’ll share my return trip to organizational heaven along with the things that have and have not worked.
And before long, we’ll find matching socks in our drawers, our desks mail free, and those buttons we lost months ago — right next to our dreams and sanity.
Come back next week, and I’ll share where it all begins.
On Monday--find out how to win a free book!
Comments
8 Responses to “Catching Up”
Great website, Sally. LOVE the picture. It so captures your spirit! I have good news for you. Someday you’ll be caught up. God promised that when Jesus returns, we’ll be “caught up” to meet Him in the air! So for once, we’ll ALL be caught up!!!
LOL, Cynthia! Hadn’t thought of that. But I’d like some order down here on earth, too.
Catching up . . . sigh. Sally, girlfriend, I think we may get “caught up” in the THINGS we need to do–goodness knows I do–but what if it’s about the people, relationships? Being passionate about them and the gifts God has given us? Anyway, I’ve been pondering these lofty thoughts, too–a big deal considering I’m such a left-brainer.
Amen, Cynthia!!!! Can hardly wait! In the meantime, I’ll be tuned in on Monday, Sally!
I think its great!
Wow, my mom, everybody! Thanks, Mom.
Terri, I agree. Life here is all about people, but when my home gets so chaotic that it deters me from having people over or having time with my own family, then it’s time to do something!
And what I love is that we can get all the stuff we’re “supposed” to do, the cleaning and organizing, under control so it doesn’t take over our lives and we do have time for people! Really, really!
Great post, Sally!
I’ve recently put myself on a schedule to make sure that I’m writing at least 1,000 words (usually closer to 2,000) every day…as well as getting in a little exercise, getting critiques done, and still having a little free time. But your post has reminded me what I forgot to build into that schedule–cleaning and organization…and my little house sure could use it!
Thanks for the reminder. I’ll be revising my schedule tonight–and praying for you that things start falling back into an order that helps you get everything you need to do accomplished.
2,000 a day–that’s great! I’m starting a new project and this time I’m keeping track of how much I do during my morning writing hours. I don’t want to kill myself or neglect my family (or socks) so I’m really curious how much I average a morning.
Have fun writing, Kaye!