Motherly Advice...Dont make your own life difficult...Part 3...Get Things Done...

 

Avoiding something doesn't make it go away.

 

That goes for preparing for events like birthdays, Christmas, and Easter, paying the bills, going to the doctor because you've found a lump, doing the housework, and having that awkward chat with a family member or friend.

 

Yes, we all get tired. We all feel overwhelmed sometimes. We all feel sad, anxious, out of sorts, forgotten, unloved, or unappreciated occasionally. Nobody really derives pleasure from the unpleasant tasks in life.

 

But I'm going to go against mainstream thinking and say that that is no excuse for not tackling them. None of those scenarios is going to improve without action of some sort. 

 

Now before you drown me in the specifics of your own situation, I'll say I don't know your situation. I'm not saying that Depression and Anxiety as clinical conditions aren't a serious matter. They are, and treatment of these conditions can be complex and lifelong.

 

I'm just talking about those days when you don't feel like doing anything. Those days when the couch or the laptop are calling and there's a million reasons to respond to the call, and just lounge about.

 

 Those days when you have a million things on your mind and can't seem to separate them into what matters and what really doesn't.

 

Those days when you feel like you're moving through oil.

 

Maybe it's hormonal. Maybe you suffer from a diagnosed condition where your energy levels fluctuate. Maybe you're feeling a little burned out for whatever reason. I know. I've been there too.

 

But can I share something? The only way I got through those times was to keep going. 

 

I kept going by doing one thing that needed to be done...the laundry, the vacuuming, the tidying...then rewarding myself with one thing I wanted to do...bake, sew, write.

 

Then one more essential, and one more pleasurable task. Mums mantra always in my head 'Do one thing, then just do one thing more'.

 

I was tired this weekend just gone. I don't know why. Maybe it's just a stage of life thing. 58 ain't 18, that's for sure.

 

I could have lounged around happily, and achieved absolutely nothing. But I can tell you, I would have been disappointed in myself come Monday morning. Doing 'nothing' all weekend, might be some peoples idea of a good time, but it's not for me.

 

The laundry basket would have been even more full, my daughter would have had to buy her lunch at an expensive café, which she can't afford as a student, the dog and his bedding would have been smelly, the pantry and refrigerator would have been empty...and all of that would have cost us precious time, energy and money that we don't want to use unnecessarily.

 

Instead, the washing got done...six loads in under three hours on one day. I just got into a rhythm with it, and didn't think about it too much.

 

It took just ten minutes to bathe the dog, and another 2 minutes to change his doggie bed linen. Washing the dirty blanky was a single load of washing and a toss in the dryer.

 

I dragged myself to the smaller local supermarket (not Aldi that day as I would have had to pack the groceries myself and that just seemed all too hard), and did a half weeks worth of grocery shopping so I wouldn't have too much to unpack once I got home. That will hold us till Wednesday, when I'll feel a bit more energetic hopefully.

 

I spent just two hours baking brownies, cookies, cheese muffins, and turkey meatballs, and got the mixed dried fruit soaking to bake a fruit cake. There was enormous pleasure in seeing my daughter pack her lunch today, knowing she was saving up to $30 by NOT having to buy food out. AND the fridge is full of goodies for snacks, meals and treats.

 

 

 

 

 

I then treated myself to some creative time, and made powder puffs and Easter Bunny footprint cookies, for Easter Gifts.

 

 

I used my time wisely to Get Things Done. I felt GOOD.

 

It really worries me that 'doing nothing' is sort of condoned these days. I'm all for having a Mental Health Day and all that, but mostly, life is about having to Get Things Done, isn't it? Even celebrities have to Get Things Done. They might have someone else to do the mundane tasks, but they still have to Get Things Done. It's just that their Things they have Get Done, are different to ours. Getting Things Done makes you feel Good. Procrastinating does not.

 

Change your mind set.

 

Instead of seeing your day to day tasks, whatever they may be, as some sort of insurmountable hill of dirty work, try to see them as an opportunity.

 

An opportunity to make your home more welcoming and comfortable.

 

An opportunity to look and smell nice.

 

An opportunity to save your family money.

 

An opportunity to feed yourself and your family healthfully and pleasurably.

 

An opportunity to spend time with your pet and make their life more comfortable too.

 

An opportunity to get to the end of the day, and feel good about what you've achieved.

 

Today is an opportunity.

 

How will you use it?

 

...Mimi...