Probably not. I mean, I don't have kids, and anyone with kids automatically trumps me.
This post has been brewing in my brain for a while now. I've noticed lately that there seems to be a secret competition for many of us (go ahead, tell me not to include you. I know I'm generalizing. It's wrong of me.) to have the biggest list of tasks of anyone, ever.
I know I've been feeling mighty burdened the last few weeks, and I'll continue to feel the same way for another month. Then my life will free up, and something else will fill the void. I recently responded to an e-mail from someone I know pretty well by saying that I didn't know how I was going to manage to get the four tasks done that had to be finished by a certain deadline. In reply, that person gave me a detailed account of just how much was on his to do list. Over and over I see this in play. The kind side of me thinks, well, we all just want a little empathy. We all feel overwhelmed. The not-so-kind side, which has emerged this week due to hormones and fear of deadlines that I'm not sure I can meet, says WTF?
At one point in my life I seriously considered selling my co-op and renting a room because I was so rarely at home. I've made it a point, along with a lot of coaching from Neal, to free up my life. I've surprised myself with the things that seemed so vital to my To Do list that, actually, I was able to let go. Arguments can be made, from myself to myself, even, that all of the items on my list are there by choice. Even the kid card is a choice, one that I have decided to refrain from. Arguments could be made, too, that these are vital things that MUST be done. But isn't that because a choice was made?
Truthfully, I don't even know what I'm getting at, but you've been nice enough to suffer through the mess I've created. All I know is that I'm really tired of feeling like, when I mention things I have to do, others must one-up me or dismiss me. After all, I'm just spending my time making up stories. And I don't have kids. I'm lucky. I have all the time in the world, right?
Here's what I want to try to take away from this crankiness: I'm going to strive to be empathetic to those people who share their weighty lists with me. I'm not going to one up them, nor am I going to bring up my list. If I can't stand the pressure of that list, I need to pare it down, and no one really cares about that except for me.
Thank you for putting up with my fussy little episode of the mean reds. It will pass. One way or another, things will get done, I'll feel less stressed, and I'll be able to be kinder. Until then, don't ask what I've been doing. I don't want to get started!