It was a few years back when I decided to stop pursuing what I was "supposed" to be doing and start fully enjoying what I "was" doing. That was an intentional decision. It was much akin to my deciding that I would not be involved in any more yard sales. That had a very significant impact on my way of handling the accumulation of stuff I had. Then we moved half way across the country. During the preparation for that I became aware of how much I still was hanging onto. Well, the goal was to bless others with better than half of our belongings. We did it but here we are, 18 months later, and still finding stuff we want to pass along. I credit some of this to acceptance. Yes, accepting the fact that the stuff that had once looked so interesting no longer held much appeal. I have intentionally started the process of making choices based on where I am now, not what I was thinking about in the past. Letting go of poor choices, outdated items, and in general the things that are taking up space but not giving me any pleasure in ownership.
This past week has been an intentionally productive one. First I wrote out a simple routine for my mornings and kept it in view. I used a timer when I wanted to quit, or not even start! Big thanks to FLYLady for her encouraging words, "You can do anything for 15 minutes!" I did not over commit but I put a lot of items on my 'nice to be done by Friday list'. And I'm happy to say that many of those items have been crossed off. Things such as washing the four windows and screens on the second floor, hanging the metal bird at the front entry, checking on the flowers around the yard, two shelf units positioned correctly in the sewing room, and even getting the ironing done from this week's laundry.
With so many daily choices to be made I want to know that I have invested most of my time in worthwhile pursuits. I believe relationships are of the highest priority. Communication and interaction needs to be genuine and uplifting. For me, an orderly environment is a basic need. I realize very quickly when stuff begins to pile up. This can be physical stuff like magazines, mental stuff like not having a flexible schedule to flex from, or emotional stuff like being involved in other people's drama. A calmness to my life is what keeps things in order. I glean this from simple things that are a part of my daily routine. I look forward to a time each morning when I read in my Bible, write in my gratitude journal, and just sit and ponder God's love. After that I check through my written routine and if I have any special requests of my time. Then I get myself into motion, and I tend to stay in motion until my timer goes off. It reminds me to take a short break, stretch, get water, and maybe even talk a brisk walk.
Enough for today, I will leave you with some of today's pictures from around my yard.
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