So Much to Do … So Little Time

My head is swimming with lists, things to do/remember/and pack. Little things. Big things. All kinds of things.

I didn’t want this to happen. I thought that I carefully choreographed this last week so that I would have time to enjoy every step along the way to this final countdown to My Great Alaskan Adventure.

Then life happened.

Capri pants that just don’t fit, thereby creating a wardrobe emergency which must be attended in the spare minutes of today. Sunday Supper on Friday. An extra little errand to run (which involves another party). Overnight guests. A fun, light and purely indulgent appointment with friends. An out of town family gathering involving an overnight stay at a Bed and Breakfast. An interesting speaker that I’d like to see on Sunday.

That is this weekend in a nutshell.

The flip side of this, is that once I return home on Sunday … I should have four free evenings to putter with all of the inane things that I find to do before I take a trip such as this.

History has shown that I will fill each evening to capacity, one way or another. Whether it is packing and completing the things-to-do-list or stocking up my home and making arrangements for things to run smoothly in my absence (even though I know that I don’t have to worry about a thing at home). Phone calls, emails and letters. And (of course) watching all of my favorite TV shows so that I have that ‘job’ up to date before I leave.

Yes, I create work where there is no need to do so. The filing cabinet within my brain likes things neat, tidy, organized and prepared. Then, I will be able to leave it all behind, the moment I walk into that airport next Thursday afternoon.

I find fun within the confines of this list-building life that I have created. There is a sense of accomplishment and one less thing on the worry-list, as I cross of the eternal list of things-to-do-before-I-go.

I seem to have a way of creating a life where I try to squeeze in as much as I possibly can, when I know that I have a finite amount of time to work with.

I do best with deadlines. This is one of the most fun deadlines that I can imagine. I’ve succeeded in my goal in savoring the moments preceding this holiday.

I will have time with each and every one of my family members this weekend. From my mom … to my siblings … to my children. I will be exactly where I want to be, and doing exactly what I want to do.

I will have time to spend time indulging in some of my frivolous pleasures. Time with friends getting a group pedicure. I can picture us now. All four of us in a ‘pedicure room’ where we will each have a special massaging chair as we sit back, relax and enjoy the easy conversation we always share.

I will have time to spend with my own thoughts … as I drive to and from my destination tomorrow/Sunday. Time to reflect on the moments of the weekend to come, the weekend past and the week ahead.

I will have time to do everything I need to do. And most things I want to do (because the list simply never stops growing).

I’m grateful for such a fun filled list of things-to-do. The time is a non-issue. Life always has a way of working out just the way it is supposed to be. No matter what other plans you have made.