Last summer I blogged about a red string I wore around my wrist. The strings came from a Buddhist practice my minister learned about when he visited India. The string was all about the knots in our lives -- the problems we work to resolve.
My string finally rotted and fell off a few weeks ago. I'd hoped it meant all my knots were unraveled, but alas, it isn't so.
~ I still have loose ends with the divorce.
~ I have an unfinished manuscript.
~ I have a request I haven't acted on.
~ My spare room looks like a bomb went off.
~ The closet for this room looks even worse.
~ I'm having to study the Level 2 facilitator's manual and workbook for the divorce group I work with so I can co-facilitate this starting next month.
~ My other foot still needs to be operated on.
Some problems are easy fixes -- like a burned-out light bulb or a squeaky door hinge. I can fix those myself.
Others aren't so easy. They require a lot more effort and/or require the help of others.
So I'm thinking of pulling out the spare red string I had and tying it around my wrist to help remind me about the unfinished manuscript, the year-old request (she DID say it had no expiration date), the junk in my spare room and closet, my foot and the Level 2 program study.
I'll get it done. I just need to get it done sooner rather than later. But some things can't be rushed, so I have to be patient. I'm not always good with patience.
And once again, rather than have you bear your souls about the knots in your lives, I'll ask you what's going on in your life and/or what good book you've read lately. I've mostly read divorce group manuals. They're good, or rather I should say they are helpful. But they're not entertaining like a good novel. And I just started a new part-time job on Monday. I'm an administrative assistant in a law firm. Ain't that a kick?
What are you reading and/or doing?
5 comments:
Hey PM - yes I still have a lot of knots to unravel too. I think we avoid the knots because we can only deal with things a bit at a time. The one thing I have learned, for whatever it's worth, is that instead of dealing with others and the problems they cause, I have to deal with myself. I have to make myself happy and then hopefully other things will just fall into place. Kind of like the woman in "The Joy Luck Club" - the one whose mother asked "What you worth?" I, over the years tended to put others first, now I ask myself, What am I worth? I AM WORTH A LOT!!! You are too, PM. We just have to realize it.
Hey PM! Knot the other red string around your wrist, but use it to remind you that you are in control. You have the choice to let things control you or to react in a peaceful way. Isn't that what the Dali Lama teaches?
Every action has a reaction. Your foot is reacting to the long miles it has traveled. Your foot just needs a little love right now. I may be looking at neck surgery in the near future. We'll have to see what the doc says.
My house is a mess too right now. There just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day to get things done. And I don't seem to have enough energy to do it. ~sigh~
Hang in there! You'll get everything done. Never ask for patience. Chaos is all you will get. LOL!
I think there will never be a time that there aren't a few loose ends out there. That's life. Some of those you can't control, so just worry about the ones you can. And the ones you can control... I think you need to decide if its really important. Does the closet really need to be cleaned? Maybe not. And does it need to be cleaned with such an urgency that it should hang over you head? Unless the plumber is coming over today and needs to access the back closet wall to fix a pipe, I say no. Piling more little things onto your plate will just make you feel more overwhelmed about the big things.
Maybe the bracelet rotting off was a sign that you should stop worrying about all that stuff. Do what you must, do what you want, then do what you can.
Lord only knows you don't need a red string to constantly remind you of what needs to be done. Throw it away and then simplify, simplify (thanks Thoreau); prioritize; and get to work on what needs to be done.
Have you seen my back room lately? It was a mess until I had guests in July and needed to use the sofa bed there. When it was needed I cleaned the junk out in less than half a day -- now the junk is piling up again. Do I stew about it? No, not unless you and your sister make some snide remark about it.
Good luck with your to do list of items.
I just finished Shoot to Thrill by Nina Bruhns, very good.
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