Are You REALLY Too Busy?

How many times have you reached out to make plans with someone and been told, 'I'm sorry, I'm just so busy right now.'? Then you ponder through Facebook posts and see comments and photos of that other person doing something or going somewhere with someone else. So, they were too busy for you, but not too busy to 'check in' at a local restaurant?

 

I get it. We all have lots of family, friends, and acquaintances. We all have a lot of responsibilities and only so many hours in a day. The next time you turn someone down on an invitation ask yourself this, 'Am I REALLY too busy or am I just not that interested?' OR 'Am I taking this person for granted; after all their time is just as valuable as mine?' Sometimes it's better to be truthful and find a nice way to say it, than to continually put people off for no other reason than 'I'm so busy right now.' Because as long as we're being honest you obviously found time to do the other things you wanted to do. I guess it all comes down to choices and making your priority list. IF you truly value a person's time and friendship you will find a way to fit them into your schedule, after all you manage to fit the 'other stuff' in. I guarantee someone would rather hear, 'I can't do lunch next week, but how about we meet up for a cup of coffee instead?'

 

People are unique, they're funny, they're giving, they're compassionate, and surprisingly they have feelings too. If you're only available for certain people when it's convenient for you, then it's more of a YOU issue than a THEM issue. You are the one that is valuing your own time more than other people's. You are the one who, for some reason, seems to think your feelings and schedules are the only ones that matter. You are the one who needs to take a closer look at what is really important. When you finally take the time to look deep inside and figure some of that out, don't be surprised if you've pushed a few people away in the process. Don't be shocked when you finally make the time to call them and ask to make plans if they say, 'I'm sorry, but I'm so busy right now.'

Do you read ahead?

Do you tend to read ahead? Are you an overachiever? Do you wait til the last minute to do something or are you always prepared? Do you arrive at your appointments early or late? These are all good questions. I'm sure if we were to be totally honest with ourselves we'd discover that the answers to these questions and others would probably paint a great picture of what our personalities are really like.

So why am I asking about whether or not you read ahead? My husband and I meet once a month with members of our small group at church. There were times in the beginning of our group when one member would always read ahead in their bible. That was great for them, but when it came time to participate in our discussion she'd forget whether the comment she had was based on something we had all read or something she'd discovered when she had read ahead. It confused her and us alike. It became an ongoing chuckle. Now our group is reading a book called 'Heaven is for Real'. It's not a long book and it's a really easy read. As a group we decided to break the book down into 4 sections of 7 chapters each. Our group only gets together once a month and we begin our nights with dinner and socializing. We have plenty of those 'ooh squirrel' moments where we get sidetracked talking about other topics ... we always have great discussion, but it often takes a concentrated effort to get us back on track and back to the book discussion. The problem with the current book is that it is a good book, it's well written, and very easy to get ahead of yourself and read right past your bookmark. Some might say, 'Then why not just read the whole book at once and then discuss it?' Excellent question ... one that we've asked ourselves on more than one occasion. I guess we just get so sidetracked with socializing and catching up on everything from the previous month, that if we actually discussed the whole book on one night ... well we'd probably close down the restaurant or miss our bedtime or 'well I just don't know what would happen'. Guess it's just too complex of a question for us to answer.

So I'll just end things with 'Do you read ahead?' and if you do 'How do you deal with it?'

Nighty Night

Have you heard all of those different opinions about how much sleep the average person requires each night? There are so many opinions out there, it's unbelievable (and exhausting). I've heard of studies that suggest the average adult should get 8 hours of sleep each night. Come on ... seriously? On what planet? And do they have a nanny, a home chef, and a personal assistant? In the 'REAL' world or at least mine I'm lucky to average 5-6 hours a night (and that might be only a few nights out of the average week).

Over the years I've listened to people talk about how much sleep a baby needs during their first few months - how they seem to be asleep more than they are awake. Then you move on to toddlers ... once they start becoming mobile they play hard for awhile and then literally crash for a few hours of satisfying zzz's (satisfying to both of the parents as well as themselves). When my children were little so many people would tell me to take a nap when my children were napping. That is something I never could do ... while they napped I did the laundry, the cleaning, opened the mail, started dinner and usually vacummed. The vacuuming part went against a lot of their suggestions, but my husband and I figured that if they could sleep happily while the vacuum was being run under their crib then 'no one' would ever have to tip toe and whisper while they were sleeping.

I worry a little about burning the candle at both ends and letting myself get run down, but somehow I always convince myself that I'll get as much sleep as I need and that my body will let me know when I need more. This morning was that kind of morning. I've been tired lately, but then who isn't? It's been a long first week of school for my high schooler and my husband and I. We've all worked or been in school all day and then had some place to be or something to do each night. Even as I sit here in the library typing this blog I am watching the clock, because I know I only have an hour until my husband and I need to leave for the high school football game to watch our daughter in the marching band. I work longer hours Mondays through Thursdays so that I can have Fridays off. Fridays are usually filled with errands and appointments. Today has been no different. I woke up this morning and drove my daughter to the bus stop at 6:45 a.m., then indulged in some well deserved personal time (30 minutes of uninterupted 'Curious George' on PBS). Nothing clears my head after a long week and gives me fresh perspective like that quirky little curious monkey. Then guess what happened? My body suddenly said 'TIME OUT'. My head dropped to the pillow on the couch like a sack of potatoes and 90 minutes later I rolled over, looked up at the wall clock and thought 'WHOA'. Guess my body knows when enough is enough.

So how much sleep do we really need? And is there really such a thing as burning the candle at both ends? I guess the bigger question besides asking 'Is it time for a nap?' is whether it's ok for a 40something year old wife and mother to admit to her readers that she watched Curious George for 30 minutes ... lol.