Discipline is the Path to Freedom

A wise woman I know shared this idea with me yesterday. Mind you, she was in the middle of a redecorating/repurposing of space crisis, but in the middle of boxes and bags and zero floor space we did have a chance to talk philosophy.

So. I do better if I know what the expectations are. Sometimes it stresses me out to have too many choices. The blank page/canvas is terrifying in its bleakness and blankness. It is true that the more I have to do, the more I get done. The last two months have been not-quite-structureless, but also not-quite-structured. I need the patterns and the rhythms. I thrive within the frame. It does not follow that I don’t dance outside the frame (I can gleek upon occasion, too), but it helps me to to manage the enormity that is my life: kids, pup, family, job, friends. It helps me to remember to DO the cool new things I am learning about cleansing chakras and meditation. It reminds me to DO the walk with Luna (was that a COYOTE this morning in the dark??), and then do the cardio that will help me get strong and lower my cholesterol.

Just Five Things. Try to remember my elephant analogy, friend. You can’t possibly eat it one bite. If the idea of cleaning the whole kitchen makes you want to weep, then do five things in the kitchen: empty the dishwasher, load it back up, gather all the dishes that are in various places in the house, wipe one counter down, take out the trash. Or if that is too much kitchen for you, then gather the dishes into the kitchen. Then go make your bed. Then put the black banana (the one that is too far gone for even banana bread) in the trash. Put the scissors back where they go. Sort your mail.

Every step forward is a victory, dear one. You don’t have to have it all together today.