Simply put, life is challenging right now. I am not a multi-tasker. I make lists with all of my tasks prioritized and I cross them off one at a time as they are accomplished. Me trying to do more than one thing at a time usually ends badly. These days, with all of the things on my list, I sort of feel like a robot. I just move from one thing to the next never really stopping in between. When you can’t multi-task, this is the only way that things get done. It’s not pretty and it’s certainly not fun.
Earlier this week I sent Tracey an email that said, “Calgon, take me away.” I realized after I’d hit send that that reference really dates me! Oh well…And then I looked online. You can still buy Calgon! I can still be taken away! To where? I don’t know. It doesn’t really matter as long as it is a place where I don’t have to deal with tax documents, people who don’t do their jobs, laundry, dog hair, or counting calories!
Over the weekend I offered to make granola for some friends, two different kinds that catered to each of their dietary preferences. Did I have time to do it? Debatable. I made time to do it because I wanted to do it. Making the granola was a “Calgon moment.” I was taken away from all the piddly, and some not so piddly, tasks that consume my mind and energy much of the time. Doing something so simple was a true escape. And, I took a few photos along the way. Don’t think for a minute that I was multi-tasking! I wasn’t. I gathered the ingredients. Took the photos. Ditched the camera. Made the granola. You guys have no idea how difficult it is for me to get my Food Friday posts done! That requires serious multi-tasking! I think the universe has an agenda which attempts to prove that you can teach an old dog new tricks!
Monday at school, once my Calgon vacation was over, I received two separate text messages from the guys for whom I’d made the granola. They both thanked me and went on and on about how good it was, how much they enjoyed it, and appreciated that I had made it for them. It’s not hard to make. And it really didn’t take much time. That’s not the point. The point is that it sure felt good to know that I had done something that created a bright spot in someone else’s day. Isn’t that really what life is, or should be, all about? If we all concentrated our efforts on creating bright spots in the lives of others rather than on building up bank accounts, resumes, empires, and egos, the world would be a much happier and gentler place. Oh, wait. That’s a whole other discussion for another day. Remember…I don’t multitask.
Seriously, As I struggle to address all that I have on my plate right now, I am trying not to lose sight of my opportunities and my desire to be a bright spot. I don’t always succeed at being it, but it is not for lack of trying. I am also truly grateful that I have people around me who create those bright spots for me as well when things seem kind of dark. It really doesn't take much to light up my life (Another reference from the Calgon, take me away era:-))
You know that you have found a good friend when she will listen to your tales of woe from the day and, rather than hitting delete on your email, is willing to respond to you with sincerity and humor, despite having her own stresses with which to deal. Thanks Tracey for being a bright spot for me lately!
And FYI, you can order Calgon in bulk! I’ll share if necessary.
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