Day Twelve
When I finish this project I will…..
When this situation calms down I will….
I’ve spent too much time waiting for “when” .
I’ve done the multitasking mom thing and survived, but generally I do – One. Thing. At. A. Time.
Grow up
Finish school
Get a job
Get married
Have a family
When family is grown do X, Y, Z
When retired from the job do a different X, Y, Z
But life isn’t a “to do” list. And as I get older I see that “when” doesn’t go on forever.
A Saturday, several years ago, my daughter-in-law Michelle called. She would be in town briefly to meet a friend at the park. Would I like to stop by?
Yes, I wanted to go. Yes, I wanted to see them. But I was working on a project I couldn’t get away from. All this time later I can’t remember the project. But I remember missing time with them.
With a year of this caregiving life under my belt, I’m determined the next one will be lived in the now. I’m dropping “when” from my conversation.
Each moment of life is a gift and meant to be lived.
And by the way, I feel a tiny bit guilty to still use the title 31 Days. Because I missed yesterday. But I don’t feel guilty enough to change it to 30 Days of Aging Grace. So, maybe this is a place where grace comes in… some days you just gotta do what you just gotta do. And that was yesterday.
Waitin’ and watchin’ and dreamin’ of what comes next!
Stop by The Nester and check out the other 31 Day posts…
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“Each moment of life is a gift and meant to be lived.” Beautiful. A challenge, daily, to be sure. Isn’t it true, things that seem so critical one day (like an argument) and days later we can’t even remember what we did or what it was about. And that’s not just age forgetfulness. The art is finding, seeing what is really important for that day.
And yes, bountiful grace – you are still in the 31!
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Yesterday was full of deadlines and things that had to be done. I kept thinking I’d get to my computer and never did. But sometimes that truly can’t be helped. As I’ve been writing these last few days (and living) I realized I spent last year living in survival mode. No more 🙂 And thank you for your encouraging comments, Maureen. They mean alot to me.
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Inspiring Brooke. I truly appreciate how you see life and how to live it. This is so true, “Each moment of life is a gift and meant to be lived.” There was a time I have a tendency to wait but as I’m getting older I try now to pursue them while I can. I just wish sometimes that life will slow down a bit for us to enjoy the moments with ourselves, family and friends.
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Thank you. I wish life would slow a bit too. Never enough time to be and do all that you’d like to. I enjoy your writing because it reminds me of when my children were small. Maybe that’s how we tackle this time thing… some people show us what’s ahead and some remind of what has been 🙂
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