life, uncluttered
it's may 11th, and i'm thrilled to be slowly emerging my head out of the crazy, busy APRIL that just consumed me. from easter, to child dedication, to temporarily relocating our church due to the NFL draft, the last few weeks have been busy.
to be super honest, the busyness this go around has added more than just a few dark circles under my eyes. i'm tired, a bit down in my spirit, and definitely not at my best.
last week, after a crazy day at work, i came home exhausted. my husband sweetly/gently suggested we reschedule plans and not meet our friends for dinner. to which, i (not so sweetly) replied that dinner was IMPORTANT, and how could he EVEN suggest something so ridiculous?
clearly, i've lost my mind. and, my husband is a saint.
here's the thing: life and work will always be busy. MAY, for me, will be full, in different ways than APRIL, but still very full -- a speaking engagement at an interfaith prayer breakfast, officiating a dear couple's wedding, launching our summer schedule, and teaching a new parenting class.
so, then. the question is not how to go-go-go-go, packing the schedule full, surviving and pushing until it's not physically/emotionally possible, BUT instead, limiting, focusing on only the essentials. life has felt cluttered, busy and unbalanced. i want something different; an uncluttered, free life that includes a good balance of work/play/rest.
practically, that means making intentional choices both towards addition + elimination.
eliminate. for this season, we have the loveliest women cleaning our apartment. we come home every-other-thursday to the cleanest of cleans. if i spent A MONTH cleaning, i couldn't make it look the way they make it look. {i'm seriously no good at cleaning, but like to pretend i can do it all. the women coming to my apartment remind me I CAN'T DO IT ALL. stop pretending. ask for help.}
add. counseling. i've seen a counselor for a long time, and wouldn't be able to think clearly, process fully, be emotionally well without her. the extra time spent driving, meeting with her, scheduling, processing afterwards is time i'll gladly add to a full schedule.
eliminate. grocery shopping. every saturday, we order our groceries from instacart. typically, i love shopping for meals for our family, and for entertaining. but, c'mon. this season is ridiculous. the time NOT spent going to the store has paid off big time in energy and time.
add: cooking. for myself, for others. the creative act is life to me. and, in a busy season, easy to justify eating out or buying premade meals. but, life uncluttered means adding life-giving, and cooking is top of the list for me.
add: friendship. we're adding a supper group this summer to our schedules, and the intended purpose is deeper friendship, vulnerability, connection. i'm thankful for the friends who haven't let me go in this season. they pursue me, fighting against the busy wall i put up. i need more of this.
eliminate: perfection. worry.
a small picture of life, uncluttered for me. and, you? what must you add/eliminate?