First of all, RIP to one of my life-long icons, Olivia Newton-John. What a queen!!! Thank you for all you did to share your gifts and influence the world for the better. You will be sorely missed!!
The year was 1991.
The place was the home of the Tar Heels: the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the most beautiful campus in the world. (not biased at all)
The situation was “Student Night” at the Newman Center on the aforementioned university. And I spied a “new guy” on the scene…
“Who is that guy? Huh?? He goes to Duuuuuke?? He’s from Texas?!? Ohhhh, he is cuuuuute!”
When I hit college, instead of “going Greek,” I decided to join the Newman Center for community and comfort in what seemed to me to be a HUGE school. I loved singing so I joined the Student Night Liturgy choir, and lo and behold, we had a new guitar player…a cute one at that! (the aforementioned Texan Duke student…)
And on Feb 2nd, 1991, our first date was to see the Mel Gibson movie rendition of Hamlet. (Did I mention he was super smart and liked Shakespeare??)
Dustin proposed at the iconic sunset-showcasing Oasis on Valentine’s Day (unfortunately it was overcast!!) and we were married on August 9, 1997. Then off to our Cozumel honeymoon before the school year started. (I was a Spanish teacher at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School here in Austin.)
3 houses, 6+ cars, 4 dogs, 3 kids, and 2 cats later…we are celebrating our 25th anniversary! Wow! (Oh, and a few NCAA Basketball championships, too, on BOTH sides of Tobacco Road!!!)
So, I repeat: TIME FLIES!!!! Over 3 decades so far!!
We have done so many things including lots of travel, survived house projects, learned tennis, navigated a pandemic, and all the ups and downs that come with making a life together.
BUT, there’s still so much more we want to do.
Herein lies the issue: you can do anything, but you can’t do EVERYTHING.
Time is passing so we must make informed choices.
We MUST SAY NO to what is not important.
We must say a resounding YES to what IS important!
(FYI both the “yesses” and the “nos” take EFFORT!)
Things are flying at us all day every day and we find so many shiny objects that draw our attention.
Some are things we WANT to do, like:
-learn a language -travel to a new country -dive into a new project -start a new business -write a(nother) book -binge watch that great show everyone keeps talking about..
Others are things we HAVE to do, like: -care for aging parents -keep the household operations going -find and keep a job -be an advocate and role model for our kids -endless laundry and dishes…
The only way to manage the deluge of distractions is to apply a filter:
does this thing matter to me??
Will I look back and say that was a good use of my limited time and energy? Will I let the immediate continue to overtake the important??
The year is more than half over. EEK!!!
August is the month that brings a welcome transition into the fall season, the school schedule (whether you have kids in school or not).
Take a minute to look back at the last month, or summer season, and identify the wins so you feel some sense of closure. It’s really hard to see those things if you’re already off to the races in backpacks, school supplies, and new shoes.
Grab your Google calendar and your journal (if you have one) and take a minute. Take some time to examine and see what transpired.
WITHOUT JUDGEMENT. Shall I repeat that??
Do NOT invoke the All-Mighty Mom Guilt by throwing yourself under the bus that you didn’t do all those things on “the List” because if you didn’t, well, then they weren’t meant to be!!
Is everyone alive and the house still standing?? Ok, ’nuff said.
If it’s still important, and has a consequence if you don’t do it, then it’s time to put in on the calendar. Stop that energy leak!
Time is passing. Say NO to as many things as possible and more! Say YES to what is a good use of that PRECIOUS time and energy!
Hugs!! (Thanks for reading a LONG one today!!!)
Just a few highlights to note from this week:
- Digital clutter is relentless, so please join us every Thursday at 11a CST for Digital Decluttering Live in my free Facebook group? (Join the CALM Collaborative here!)
- We welcomed 2 more new members into the Find FOCUS Membership!! Woohoo!! New friends!!
- We are coming to the end of my offering free Kolbe™ A interpretations, so get in before the end of August!! How?? Click here to get a link to take the $55 test, or here to schedule your free interpretation once you have your results. Get one for your partner/spouse/co-worker and grab an A to A comparison report for free, too!
