Tasks Tasks

I would start out by saying the whole "this blog is so neglected" but let's be real, this blog is what it is right now. In this season of life it's more like the once every few weeks post. I start so many but inevitably something happens to take my eyes away....and I'm not complaining, honestly as challenging as having little kiddos is I really really love it. I am not anxious for school years, is that weird?! I just want to hold on to these sweet sweet days of no real "structure" (I mean of course we have appointments, meetings, the usual) but with a 1 and 3 year old my day is what we want it to be. If it's 10 am and we want to go to the park we can! I'm sure I'll love school age when we get there but I'm not ready yet :) 

People say constantly that life is about "balance", I've never really seen that so clearly as in motherhood. Because if I want to have a clean house I CAN -- it just means other things have to go or be sacrificed. If we want to eat healthy, exercise, do crafts, go on play dates, work, etc we can it's just a constant juggling act.  I know I'm preaching to the choir. And not just moms at all, that's just where I have seen it most clearly displayed in my life. Because before I honestly could almost get everything in. I can survive and function well on a freakishly little amount of sleep (this is now coming back to bite me MAJORLY in my children who inherited this amazing special gift aren't you jealous?) But a whole new adjustment had to come when I realized I couldn't and never will be able to get it all done. Lately I have been working on, instead of whining and complaining that my day's work is pointless and all I do is wash the same dishes and wipe up the same messes (I do this too, just ask my husband) I am trying trying trying (or rather, praying praying praying) to allow God to use these days for his glory. It changes my whole mindset, every task of every day when I can on occasion see it that way. This never ending "LIST" of things I think need to happen sometimes really don't. How can I even expect him to work and move in me when I'm running a million miles and hour in every direction?

I'm sure you've felt the same. Even just sitting in one spot and looking around at your house, yard, office whatever you can start to make a mental list of every task you need to do. All the sudden you feel overwhelmed with the ongoing maintenance of life. Part of this is our culture, we are so so so work driven, or rather, task completion oriented. Just travel to a couple other countries and you will realize how ingrained it is in you to work hard hard hard all day long. And this is NOT a bad thing, but sometimes it can be your enemy and something that really crushes your spirit because you feel like you just can't keep up. I remember in Italy, France, Asia and so many other places we've been afternoon time would hit and BAM store fronts start closing because it's rest time. You don't even bother going out in the afternoon because everything is closed. I wouldn't mind this being copied in our culture!! I think there are obvious positives and negatives to this, but what I love is the mentality that things can wait. In a culture where many of us or our husbands come home from work and after dinner work again until bed it does kind of make me sad that we can't adapt to that mentality that it's OK IF EVERYTHING doesn't get done. Guess what it'll still be there tomorrow! 

Anyways just some thoughts. Don't be crushed by the ongoing list or the tasks that are never ending. Take a minute and think "what relationships need the care and attention I'm about to give to my to do list". What if you spent your time, what if I spent my time encouraging, loving and supporting others as an integral part of my day.

Maybe add it to our list :)