By Stacy Johnson
My life is slowly coming back under control now that school has started. I have discovered that I'm a little bit obsessive/compulsive when it comes to routines. We have our morning "get ready for school" routine. The baby and I have our "clean up the house before lunch routine," then there is the "just home from school" routine. Let's not forget "get ready for football/cheer" routine, the "dinner" routine, and the "go to bed" routine. Today is only the beginning of week two and we're still ironing out some kinks. I was in tears this morning during scripture study with the kids because things didn't go as smoothly as I had planned.
It got me thinking that I even have a writing routine. Meaning, I need certain things to happen before I can actually sit down and do some serious writing. My desk needs to be cleared somewhat, my bed made, the baby quietly playing near me, a cold diet pepsi can within arms reach, and the knowledge that nothing could possibly distract me from what I am about to do. (I know none of you have the distractions I do:) jk
How sad, that in the last week, the week when I thought I could get so much done, I haven't found time to fit in much writing. I'm easily distracted and it is frustrating to me. I have a hard time focusing on my next writing project, or any writing project for that matter. Luckily, at the peak of my despair....my monthly ANWA meeting. My sweet sister reminded me of a children's series I had mentioned months ago. She said I needed to start. Now, it is all I can think about. But, with all the catching up I have been working on the last week, I still need to work on my "writing" routine so I can get it down. So, that's my goal for the next two weeks, finding my "writing" routine and making it happen.
Stacy the best advice I was ever given was take each season as it comes...don't rush your seasons. If it's your season to write, the time will come. If not, let it go until the season comes. And trust that it will come.
ReplyDeleteI want a writing routine, too. School starts tomorrow for us, so I'm hoping to make it happen.
ReplyDeleteI applaud you for having any routines at all!
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to eke out a writing routine of my own...beyond a facebook profile update once a week.
I like Terri's advice above. I think that's very sound advice and considering our seasons, we may need to just trust for a while and be content with helping others write.
Whether or not I can really do that or not remains to be seen...
I read this blog and the comments with real interest. I would love to have routines. The only ones I have are the ones enforced by things beyond my control, like when I have appointments, how consistently I manage to arrive at the temple for my weekly shift, and what time the Sabbath block begins and ends (though not how long I might stay).
ReplyDeleteOther than the above, my routine is too haphazard to be given such a lofty title. When the doctors wanted to put me on warfarin, I resisted because they stressed it should be taken at the same time every day. I'm on it now, and I'm afraid I seldom take it at the same time. It's not that I don't want to. It's that I am so unorganized and easily distracted that I forget. I decided bedtime was the best time for me to remember to take it, but that might be anywhere from nine in the evening to five in the morning (sometimes with lengthy unscheduled naps in my recliner).
I even schedule my day, listing not only the jobs I want to do, but the time allotted for each little project. I've never in the last fifty years completed much more than half of the things on my list, but those I've done have almost never been in the order I'd intended.
I'm weak, incorrigible, and still love life. What can I say? If it takes better self control to become perfect (and I have no doubt that that's true) then woe is me. Maybe I didn't learn scheduling 101 by the Spaulding method. Is it too late for me?