When it's hard....

I realize that I am not the only mom who has days when things seem to be falling apart or spiraling or escalating or overwhelming or closing in. I’ve talked to enough friends to know that we all have those days.

I had one recently...when I looked around my house, and all I could see were the unfinished projects, the loads of laundry waiting to be done, the checklist of things to do for my new little business, and all I could feel was overwhelmed. I was out of rhythm and sinking in quick sand. And, I was becoming more emotional (as in, not so kind, more demanding, louder…). It was turning into a “bad day.” Because on that day, I’d forgotten a few very important things.

First, I’d forgotten that there will be days like this. I’d forgotten that it’s normal to have low energy days once in awhile, or to feel behind sometimes. Instead of letting the overwhelmed feeling come, move through and then disappear, I tried to race it down, fight it, and beat it by taking on everything, all at once. Not really do-able.

Second, I’d forgotten to take care of myself. I’d forgotten that I woke up still feeling tired, the beginnings of a cold taking hold, so perhaps this was not the best day to tackle all the things that were bugging me.

Third, I’d forgotten to look for the simplest thing that could bring more peace.

But luckily, I did remember that a bad day is just like any other day….a series of minutes strung together into hours. Each minute carries the opportunity to change. Each minute brings a chance to do things differently. So, I started using my minutes more wisely:

I took a deep breath.

I drank a glass of water.

I let go of the overwhelmed feeling.

I gathered the girls around me. I joined their game.

We cleaned up toys.

We put on socks and shoes.

We went outside. We ran. We swung. We laughed.

I made a cup of tea.

I sat in the sunshine, sipping my tea, watching them play.

Minute by minute, everything changed. The day was new again. Salvaged, from the bad days vault. I was free to go back and find peace amid the laundry and the check lists.