Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Slack or Humility

Today was one of those days where I had to juggle several things. Typically, this doesn't bother me, and I tend to bring it upon myself anyway.I agree to do this and that. However, usually, I volunteer to do this and that. Today was one of those days.

I homeschool the kids I nanny once a week. Today was homeschooling day. Being the animal lover that I am, I volunteered to take their dog to the vet (my dad) today because the dog was 6 months overdue for his yearly vaccines. Fine, no problem. We have the appointment. Kid (only had one of the 2 today) in tow. Dog had double ear infection. We get meds. We pay. We take a tour of the hospital for the (very hyper) kiddo to look around.

Then he wants to hit McDonalds because it's now noon. Great. Grab a to-go Boy Kids Meal and we are on the road back home, a 40 minute drive. At this point I have driven to work (40 minutes) back towards home for the vet (another 40 minutes) and headed back to the house (40 more minutes).

Back at the house. Now I have both kids. One grabs their rollerblades and the other his scooter. I leash the two dogs, grab my phone for emergencies, and we head to the park.

Once at the park my phone rings. I recognize it's a number from my state, but not one I know. I hit ignore. Two seconds later my dad calls me from his cell phone.

"Hi, Liz! Are you on your way to pick up Ben?"

long pause

panic

WHAT??!! I FORGOT TO PICK UP BEN!! I HAD IT ALL PLANNED OUT IN MY HEAD. After the appointment at the hospital I was going to pick him up from work and drop him off. I even thought about it this morning. YOU DUMB MORON!! HOW COULD YOU FORGET?! UGH!!!!!!!

My poor dad had to go get him and start his afternoon appointments late because I was 40 minutes away.

You see, I pride myself in being able to handle several things at a time. At the same token, I leave very little room for myself to mess up- no slack. I freely give it to others but not to myself. I'm not a mother or a wife. I have little reason to feel scattered or unable to remember things.

So while I am giving myself no slack, I am a little humbled today, knowing I can't do everything all the time. Even when I have it all planned out and perfectly set, I can easily hinder my plan by simply getting in my own way by trying to be too perfect or too "planned".

4 comments:

Shannon K. said...

Bright side is you are learning these lessons now before you are a wife and mother! Good to know your limitations.

Amanda said...

God has a way of teaching us the lessons we need... RIGHT when we need them!! You are still a supermom and daughter and employee and wife!

Blessings-
Amanda

Unknown said...

Oh, sounds like a page ripped from my own book! There have been times when I've volunteered my life away! But, I love when God gently reminds me of the power of no. And that it's tottally healthy and good to use that word! It sounds like you are learning gracefully, friend! And it made a great blog post!

Anonymous said...

That's a crazy lot of driving! It sounded like a good plan, but that homeschooling will suck your brain out. ha ha.