Q: How do you eat an elephant?
A: One bite at a time.
This joke has been one of my ten year olds' favorites for the past few months. He has repeated it so many times that his younger siblings have picked it up, and repeat it too. The joke can be heard quite frequently around our house. It struck me the other day that the joke is rather reflective of my life.
Despite this so called simple life, despite my best efforts to keep our schedule manageable, I still find, more times than I like, the demands of my time and energy are overwhelming. It happens when I underestimate the time involved in a project. It happens when differing responsibilities and commitments all seem to fall in the same week. It is happening now.
When I look at the length of my to do list and see the calendar filled with appointments and activities, it all seems rather overwhelming, like trying to eat an elephant. When looking at all those demands, it is depressing.
Stepping back from my self focus, I can see that nothing on that list is really all that important in the big picture. The world will not come to a screeching halt if I do not get the green beans picked. My children will not suffer life long damage if we do not make it to every co-op outing or wonderful educational event. Though the finances are a source of stress currently, the essentials; housing, food and transportation are not in jeopardy, and those really are the only important bills.
When I place my focus back to my priorities, the Lord and my family, that long list is still there, but it no longer feels so overwhelming. I can tackle that list, one bite at a time. It may not all get done, and that is alright. There is a peace in knowing the most important things are taken care of, and that the rest doesn't really matter that much anyway.
It seems that regardless of our efforts to keep a manageable schedule, or whether we live the city or country life, there are times that are simply too busy; too stressful. It seems to be part of this life. It is overwhelming at times, like the task of eating an elephant, but like that task it can only be completed one bite at a time.
Photo credit: Sean Waugh
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Q: How do you eat an elephant?
A: One bite at a time.
This joke has been one of my ten year olds' favorites for the past few months. He has repeated it so many times that his younger siblings have picked it up, and repeat it too. The joke can be heard quite frequently around our house. It struck me the other day that the joke is rather reflective of my life.
Despite this so called simple life, despite my best efforts to keep our schedule manageable, I still find, more times than I like, the demands of my time and energy are overwhelming. It happens when I underestimate the time involved in a project. It happens when differing responsibilities and commitments all seem to fall in the same week. It is happening now.
When I look at the length of my to do list and see the calendar filled with appointments and activities, it all seems rather overwhelming, like trying to eat an elephant. When looking at all those demands, it is depressing.
Stepping back from my self focus, I can see that nothing on that list is really all that important in the big picture. The world will not come to a screeching halt if I do not get the green beans picked. My children will not suffer life long damage if we do not make it to every co-op outing or wonderful educational event. Though the finances are a source of stress currently, the essentials; housing, food and transportation are not in jeopardy, and those really are the only important bills.
When I place my focus back to my priorities, the Lord and my family, that long list is still there, but it no longer feels so overwhelming. I can tackle that list, one bite at a time. It may not all get done, and that is alright. There is a peace in knowing the most important things are taken care of, and that the rest doesn't really matter that much anyway.
It seems that regardless of our efforts to keep a manageable schedule, or whether we live the city or country life, there are times that are simply too busy; too stressful. It seems to be part of this life. It is overwhelming at times, like the task of eating an elephant, but like that task it can only be completed one bite at a time.
Photo credit: Sean Waugh
Looking for life insurance quotes?