"Don't let an imperfect situation be an excuse to do nothing. Interruptions will never go away, so don't wait for them to disappear before you start something." Deniece Schofield
I've been a little stalled on my writing lately, because there have been many things going on at my house. We're trying to start a major decluttering project in order to put our house up for sale. Also, I'm helping plan my Mom's wedding and shower. Then there's homework, laundry, and the daily interruptions that come along with having small children. My To Do list seems to grow exponentially. Did I mention the 40 emails that were waiting in my inbox last night? :)
Some days I dream of running away to a little bed and breakfast where I can write, sleep, and take long, uninterrupted baths. Where other people cook the meals and I don't have to do dishes. I actually did this last year. My husband gave me a weekend away for Mother's Day. Isn't he sweet?
Unfortunately, I can't go away all the time. Nor do I want to. I live in an "imperfect situation," one not always conducive to prolific writing. But neither do I want to wait until my children are grown or the house is quiet. Because then it may be too quiet and I'll be desperate for one of my children to call.
So I'll make the best of this stage of my life and carve out time when I can. The Playfriends and my CPs will remind me to get my rear in gear when I haven't produced a chapter in a while. Which gives me an excuse to leave the housework until the nooks and crannies become borderline toxic. Because housework is definitely at the bottom of my ToDo list! :)
I'm always on the lookout for good ideas. How do y'all carve time out of your imperfect situation?
Angel
5 comments:
It's hard to break the habit of making sure family comes before your own desires of the heart. There will always be things that get in the way, work, family, volunteering, sports events, recitals, school. But if you don't make the time now, no matter if it's 30 minutes or an hour, you may find yourself in the position I've been in...trying to shift gears now that two kids have left the nest and two more are in High School.
The old saying goes... "if Mama ain't happy, ain't no one happy."
Make it happen. Take time for yourself, excerise, write, read, relax. Give yourself the right to do what you enjoy. It will help you see the world in a whole new light and everyone will appreciate you more.
Kathy
I guess that's why I've given myself the one page a day goal. No matter what is going on, you can find a few minutes to crank out one page, then close the file without the slightest hint of guilt. If you manage 2 or 3 pages, even better. Either way, you're chugging along.
I do wonder how I'll ever manage with kids, especially if the family curse of twins hits me. I'm worried about it already...
SP
I see your 40 emails and raise you 40 more...
There has to be a good dividing line between writing and being a writer. I'm finding out the "being a writer" side will eat up tons of my time without me realizing it. I figure the work we're doing for the website and the chapter are good practice for promoting and networking when we're published, but look at how much time we're investing. It seems like the business side of being a writer can make it very difficult to write.
(says the girl who picked up luncheon brochures today...labels to print and stick, stamps to buy and stick...)
PC
I see your 80 emails and raise you 100. I had almost 200 emails to read yesterday when I got to work. Needless to say they still aren't all read and trashed.
What do I do? Reward my husband. Because he does all the cooking and cleaning at my house - not to mention referees bath time and generally entertains my girls in the evenings after we get home from work. I don't actually write at this time but I can crank out many of the other things that need to get done so I can enjoy my me time without guilt.
I also have to admit that I compartmentalize quite well. If I don't get to something I just put it out of my mind until tomorrow when I can. It ain't going anywhere. And neither am I.
Although I will freely admit that I haven't written a word for 4 days. With everything going on (including getting ready for my brother's wedding on Friday) I just had to give myself permission to slide this week.
Oh and did I mention that BG is running a fever tonight? I guess I'll be squeezing in a trip to the doctor tomorrow between year end accounting crude at work, picking up dresses and tuxes, jewelry and shoes, and finding time to breath.
Instigator
You want excuses? I have excuses. A gazillion of them. I thought an empty nest would take them all away. Nah. I just created new ones. I'm the "Queen of Excuses."
As one who has navigated the waters of parenthood, let me assure you that (1) your situations are completely normal and (2) there is light at the end of the tunnel and it ain't the train heading straight toward you.
I've written another page today and done some editing on the previous 12-13 pages. It's progress!
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