Then Saturday my husband, my wonderful husband who has such a clear view of things as they are, pointed out that the only one that cared about all the stuff I was trying to do was me.
Now don't misunderstand. It's not that my family doesn't care about what I do around the house. They do care, and they are very vocal about appreciating it. But they don't care if the dishes don't get done immediately after dinner. They don't care if the house isn't "just-so," or if all their laundry is done, or if the cupboards are organized. I'm the one who cares about it-- which means I control it. And if I don't want to do it, I don't have to.
We've done a pretty good job in modern society confusing "want" with "need," but we only seem to be aware of it when making snide judgments about others material acquisitions It runs deeper than that. Our existence is predicated on confusing "want" with "need." Not just in what we buy, but in what we do.
And the big question is, why do we keep doing it?
 |
| Need vs. Want illustration by Erin Hanson |
So in my quest for April awesomeness, I'm going to spend some time really thinking through all of this. Next time I think I need to do something I'm going to take a breath and figure out if I really need to, or if it is my inner task master making arbitrary rules.
If the dishes don't get done because we are all sitting around the family room listening to Thing 1's latest antics in college girl/apartment living, or because we all take turns driving around the block in Thing 2's new handed-down truck, or because Thing 3 convinced us to watch the sunset while she shot photos, then the dishes can sit a few hours more.
Life is out there, waiting. And it really doesn't care if you've gotten all your laundry done.
Have a marvelous Monday!
Life doesn't care if my laundry is done, but my husband gets grumpy when he doesn't have clean socks. Luckily he knows how to run the washing machine! Good food for thought on wanting and needing. It's been on my mind lately, too.
ReplyDeleteThank you Tabetha. I love your musings and your quotes (Jane Austen--cool!). I also thought of Shakespeare's sound and fury as I read the rest, which is one of the nice things about reading--the little synapse jumps. I'm living in "those days" too (tight space-- insane taskmaster). And I've been breathing deep and reminding myself to live instead in the beautiful moment. To stop pouting about the ones that got away. I could show disheveled pictures of my studio (for one) and lament over a painting sketched but not...well, painted (for weeks now).... Or, I can shut the studio door, listen to my daughter read a chapter from her book, catch an email from my sister. My kitchen's not too bad (that's where everyone hangs out most of the time anyway). And it's Awesome April! (= Happy Monday. Lynaea @ EveryDayBloom.com
ReplyDeleteYou are so right! Same goes here. It's entirely me putting pressure on myself. I want everything to look tidy, but it never quite does. And we really ought to spend time hearing our children while they are still living close to us. :)
ReplyDeleteI kind of really love that Jane Austen quote.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post. I need to do the same. I stress myself out all the time with an impossible list of things that I think need to be done. Thanks for linking up with Inspired Tuesday.
ReplyDeleteI do have some things that need to be done! Thanks for sharing with Inspired Tuesday :)
ReplyDeleteHi Tabetha - You post and lovely quotes nails to the business and doing about, what we sometins get caught up ... then it's time to stop and realize, that "Less is more" :) Enjoy the slow life,
ReplyDeleteNina
Oh so true! Its easy to be carried away.. one needs to take time to stop and think about the things we choose to do. Lovely post!
ReplyDelete-Reshama
www.stackingbooks.com
I did a blog where I also thought about/touched on this subject recently. I have found since my husband deployed my list of things to do was more then full. But, I was forgetting to do some of the more important things in life. Like play with my kids and take care of myself. I was also literally forgetting things! :) I needed to slow down and re-evaluate. I think there are so many of us that need to do that. I am glad I am not the only one that thinks so. :)
ReplyDeletehttp://milwifehumorandlife.blogspot.com/2013/04/brain-power-of-gnat.html