A Synchronized Center

I asked myself a question the other day:
What's the first thing that comes to mind when you wake up in the morning?

My initial answer was, "The day of the week, appointments to be kept, any errands to run. And housework. Always the housework."

Of course, when the day of the week springs to mind, I usually know right away the rest of the information I need without looking it up on a scheduler. That's the benefit of routine.

But is that what I really want to be thinking about when I wake up in the morning? Almost sounds heavy handed, nothing to get me excited enough to climb out of the cozy, soft covers of my bed. (Of course it always helps when my cat Sophie meows me awake in the morning, looking for a scratch behind the ears that initiates a purr fest.)

After some discussion with hubby, I realized what I lacked. I had the Wrong Focus.

Of course, keeping the house in order, taking care of errands, and being prompt for appointments are well and good. I will continue to be diligent with such matters.

But with all of these things it can feel as if there's is always Something. There doesn't seem to be a place to rest the mind when there's something else on the agenda that could or should be done.

Thus, a underlying sense of inappropriate guilt pervades the mind, like a nasty, creepy goo that stifles and chokes any possibility of joy or passion.

Something is seriously wrong with this picture. I have sensed this for quite some time but had not come up with a sensible solution, something that would really Work. And not just for me, but also for my family.

What resulted from this discussion for me was truly profound.

What I focus on each day becomes my center. If I am always centered on keeping my house in order, I will eventually burn out, fall behind, and thus, feel lousy about my perceived inadequacy with taking care of things like I should.

I didn't appreciate that picture, and neither did hubby.

So we decided to make some changes. Good Changes. Appropriate Changes. Synchronizing Changes.

Instead of focusing on things that are always ongoing Monday through Friday, I would instead focus on my responsibilities for our business, Bill's Quality Electric, LLC as well as my writing business, JournalWriter Freelance.

Of course, I have always given attention to these very important dimensions and responsibilities in my life, but I always felt my house duties eclipsed this focus, since there was always something that needed doing.

But now, I have determined, when I wake up in the morning, I think of what day it is, and I am excited, passionate, and peaceful about accomplishing the tasks of our electrical contracting business as well as my freelance writing business rather than feeling distracted, with my mind going in a million directions. I now have a focus and purpose to my day that I feel in sync with. And of course, giving my all to this dimension in our lives makes everything easier, for me and for Bill.

So that's a win-win.

Now you may be wondering, what about the housework? Ah, I was coming to that. ;) We certainly wouldn't just leave that undone there, now, would we?

We decided to make house cleaning a family affair: On Saturday mornings after a relaxing wake up/breakfast time, we would all chip in and work to get the house cleaned and organized for the week.

Now, in previous times, I might have balked at this idea since I had an inborn aversion to doing housework on Saturdays in connection with the residual boredom with which I associated such duties from my childhood days.

But now it feels different. It is appropriate. I appreciate taking a day on the weekend to focus on the home and put all of my energy into those tasks. (Of course, the smaller stuff like laundry and dishes I still do during the week days, tasks that don't overwhelm.) And whatever I accomplish for that day will be satisfying to me, since I'm not alone in this newfound approach.

I don't feel split in a myriad of directions which makes for a more calm, centered foundation to living and taking care of responsibilities.

Each day I know precisely where I'm going and what I'm doing, and I can put all of my energetic enthusiasm toward my place in the home and in the business world as well. And if something comes up I didn't plan on, I know it's OK, since the unplanned events don't need to be seen as an interruption but part of the bigger plan for the day or the week.

And of course, when I'm going about the tasks I've taken on the responsibility to do, I have the support and blessing of the Creator of the Universe to help me every step of the way.
My tasks then take on a multi-dimensional meaning. I'm not just cleaning the house; I'm caring for all that I have been blessed with and being a blessing to my family in the process with what I contribute.

It's a win-win for everyone.

Now that's something to be Thankful For!

© 2010 by Dawn Herring