Needing To Be Organized

 Retirement has taught me I am a woman who:

needs to be organized

 needs a schedule

 And because of that, 

a woman who needs her planner and her lists.

Seriously. How does anyone function without a planner or a list? And really good pens to write with?ˆ

Oh. And post-its. Those are essential.

With post-its, I make all kinds of lists

• To-od
• Packing for the lake
• Packing for weekend trips
• Futures projects
• Books I’ve read
• Books to read
• Writing ideas—even though I never get to most of them. 

And then I stick them in my planner.

My planner is my daily guide. I  write in appointments, bills to be paid, birthdays and anniversaries.  I’ve added Read, Write, Walk, to each day so that I’ve scheduled them in. And it really is helping me to stick to goals I made at the beginning of the month-my own March challenge-I wasn’t reading or writing anymore and I just didn’t feel like me because of it. So scheduling these two things each day and writing them in my planner has reminded me they are important. It feels good to check them off each day.

And if I falter, well, that’s also something I’ve learned—Grace.

I Should

 

I SHOULD

Seems to be the word of the day. And there are lots of "should do's " on my list

• I should eat better
• I should walk more
• I should clean my house
• I should call friends and family more
• I should, I should, I should

But sometimes, all those "should do's" make me feel inadequate. And who needs to feel like that?

So I'm making a new list! I should...

• listen to more music
• dance in the dining room
• eat a piece of chocolate every day
• only read books that make me happy
• play with Chloe in the yard
• take a bubble bath
• buy a new notebook
• bake when I feel like it (and then give it away)
• watch Hallmark movies without guilt
• take a walk with no destination or motive
• sit outside and watch the neighborhood
• order takeout
• eat ice cream 
• buy flowers (or plants) for me

What's on your "should do" list? Maybe I can add it to mine!

A Lesson in Patience

 

This long-legged dinosaur-like bird glides into view, landing gently in the shallows of the lake.

Picking her feet up gently and walking through the water, watching, always watching, for an unsuspecting bite.

She stands patiently, oh so patiently, (much more patient than I who watch her)  for an unsuspecting bite.

And then quickly, throws her beak in the water, then lifts her head to the sky, and swallows.

One bite. That's it. Then the whole thing starts again.

Patience.

#sosmagic20 Heartstretched

It started with a picture.
One picture on Facebook.
Four smiling faces. Four friends looking forward to a night of fun and laughter. Four friends. Soon, much too soon, to become three.
One picture and it was seven years ago, the Monday after prom.

In high schools, the Monday after prom is lazy, full of chatter about weekend events, and whispers in the corners about things teachers shouldn't hear. Phones get passed around with pictures to share and underclassmen listen wistfully about the magic of the night.

But they don't prepare you for Monday after proms like that one,

"for the silence

for the echo in the hallway

even though students walk through them"

I wrote those words seven years ago, and as I write them again today, my heart remembers breaking for a young man who thought there was no other way. The eerie quiet came back, the silent tears remembered. I thought I was prepared for the day, but I wasn't.

This week, as I've checked out Facebook memories, those from seven years ago stand out. His friends are still grieving and I offer virtual hugs, though I know it's not the same as wrapping them in my arms and listening through the tears like I tried to do that day.

#sosmagic20 Small {Spring} Matters

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Spring comes slowly around here.
Winter does not quite want to give up her grip.
A 70-degree day arrives and you think,
"Spring is here!"

You start to believe you can
Drag the deck chairs from the garage and
The flip-flops from the closet.

You watch the buds on the trees
Grow bigger each day,
Almost while you watch.

You walk your way around the yard,
Checking, checking,
For tiny green sprouts to poke through the ground.

The Tiger Lilies fight their way through their leaf blankets.
and the Lily of the Valley finds holes in the rock garden
to spread their little white bells through the gnome village.

Sedums hope you will soon
Cut away the old stems
So they can push to the sky

You itch to grab a rake and
Clear the flower beds of their leaf blankets.
You want to give them
A little more warmth,
A little more room to spread their roots and grow.
So the warmth of the sun
Can work it's MAGIC.

But you don't. Not yet.

Because a day and half later
It snows.