The busy-craziness is getting to me. I just have to keep telling myself I am doing what I want. Maybe it’s a good thing I have many projects as I get easily distracted. My writing and art have taken a back seat to other projects. Right now, gardening takes up a chunk of time and my writing is only in journaling and writing articles for the paper. No time for my book, little time to blog, and the lists grow on subjects I want to explore.
No, I can’t do it all at once. I have to be satisfied with what I get done at any given time. I do get a lot accomplished – and accomplished doesn’t necessarily mean finished. It doesn’t have to. Yes, I would like to get projects finished, but it really is about the journey, and I do love what I do.
Each day is an adventure in where my travels take me (even if it’s just in my mind). The short gardening stints in the yard have expanded from 20-30 minutes to over an hour. That’s due to it being hot during the day when I won’t spend time outside. So, I try to do more in the morning when it’s cooler. There’s always something different. I go outside with a particular plan, and once I get outside, something else needing to be done distracts me. That’s OK. It needs to be done.
Then there is my work with the newspaper – editor, putting together the community calendar, and writing the Bradford Neighbors and the gardening columns. Thankfully, it’s not a full-time job and I can put in a few hours each day, usually Thursdays through Sunday. There are exceptions to those “rules.” Sometimes I go on an assignment to interview someone or take pictures. Sometimes I will have something to do on one of my “work” days and that means figuring out how to still work within the paper’s deadline. Plus, other projects occasionally come up.
There’s my social life to contend with; which is very important. I live alone and mostly work from home, so it’s crucial to get away from the house and spend time with friends. Sometimes it’s the once-a-week breakfast. Sometimes a few of us will go off on an adventure or meet with other friends or there are interesting events to attend.
My writing, besides journaling and newspaper columns, consists of blogging and various books in process. Art consists of pastel paintings and photography. Both of those passions are on hold, although I’ll go in the studio once in a while and pick at a painting. The writing is calling to me again and I keep pushing it aside.
Then, of course, there are usual things around the home that needs attention. Those chores include buying groceries (which I dread) a couple times a month as well as preparing meals (even more dread). I get so busy during the day I don’t want to stop to eat, let alone having to take the time to put a meal together and then do the necessary clean up. (And I purposely put in “having to” instead of just saying “taking the time” because that “having to” makes it an immense must do.
It’s important, plus I have to get rest. Even if I wanted to work more, my brain shuts down around 5 p.m. It’s like someone flips a switch and I’m turned off. I need the couch time, meditation time, and TV time. Sometimes I’ll fit in a little reading or a little writing. Sometimes the meditation or reading will stimulate ideas which I take time to write down (turning into one of my many “lists.”)
Unfortunately, with so many passions, something needs to lay by the wayside for a while. I’ll eventually circle back around for it. Spring is my time to garden, but now with the heat and bugs, I’ll back off. That will allow time for another passion. Life is so darn interesting!
This morning’s writing was intended for the gardening blog, but as I began, it kinda (I love using the word “kinda”) fell into the art of whole-hearted living. It’s about being satisfied with what I’ve accomplished. It’s celebrating each step and taking time to see the beauty around me. It’s about allowing changes to routines and adjusting schedules as needed. It’s changing how I think by changing what I think about. (Some things I still have to work on like the dread of meal preps, ha ha.) And, it’s about creating beauty for myself which creates beauty for others.
This is whole-heated living! And it’s my goal to enhance this concept.
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