March 24, 2008

Day One of my new resolve to act like a Nine-to-Fiver started out with a real bang. I woke up before midnight last night with a ripping headache–probably all the Easter candy I consumed yesterday–and I was awake till after 3 a.m. Mentally, I whined and griped to myself for a while. You know the routine: Every time I try to get a lot of work done, something happens to wreck it. I won’t be able to work a full day tomorrow on such little sleep. There go my plans of sleeping well, walking early, eating my healthy oatmeal, and getting to work at 8:30.

After a while, I got mad. Then I settled down and had another aha! moment. (This is another embarrassing thing to admit, as it’s a lesson I had known in my 20s and 30s but somehow forgot in a gigantic senior moment.) I recalled the day when my children were babies and preschoolers and elementary students. I was writing and teaching from home and speaking–and enduring a lot of surgeries. I was awake in the night quite often–I sometimes got my best work done then. What I didn’t do was lie in bed and tell myself that I’d be too tired the next day to feed the children, or change diapers, or help with homework. I just did it, no matter how I felt, because I wanted to be a good parent and I loved my kids.

What had happened? I’d turned into some kind of wimp over the years after they left home.

Enough whining, I finally told myself in the middle of the night. I went back to bed, slept a couple more hours, got up at 6:15 and did my three miles at 6:45, ate my healthy oatmeal breakfast, fetched my timer and got to work. (I’m up to 83 minutes and 12 seconds right now.) And truthfully, I feel pretty good. If nothing else, I’m gonna feel great about accomplishing the writing tasks on my list for today. I’ll also lay off the chocolate and probably sleep fine tonight.

Nike really knew what they were talking about, didn’t they? Just do it!

2 Comments »

1. 

   Just do it! Yes, I will. Right now. Suck up the whines, throw out the excuses, and get in there and write! I’m on my way.

   Comment by Sherryl — March 25, 2008 @ 2:35 am

2. 

   You’re funny, Sherryl! Yes, we all need a good swift kick in the behind from time to time. It’s hard anatomically to do it to ourselves, but it can be done!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — March 26, 2008 @ 1:21 am

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