Thursday, October 14, 2010

SOME THOUGHTS

SOMETIMES:
I am not my best self.
I stress out entirely more than necessary.
I don't balance life like I want.
BUT THEN:
I am reminded I am blessed.
I feel comfort in small ways.
I am happy and get back on track.
SOB STORY:
Last week was one of those crazy "sometimes...but then" kind of weeks. I was really struggling to:
Get homework done, eat healthy, get some exercise in, read scriptures, say prayers, yada yada yada...basically everything I know I need to and I want to get done just wasn't really getting done effectively, if at all. Add to that the annoyance of dumb happenings throughout the week and you have an upset, stressed out, whining Whitney. And then of course the stress kicks in, then guilt, then tears, then venting to my mom (this time it happened to be my dad as mom was playing in Scottsdale...venting to dad isn't so bad afterall, although I still missed you mom! I'll vent to you both now...buahaha.) Back to the story: This isn't a new occurance or anything, but nevertheless still completely unwelcomed.
TURNING POINT:
Dads really do know how to listen and say just the thing you need to hear. Especially my dad. It was thoughtful, hilarious, and really helped me change my attitude. Then my mom returned from Scottsdale to spend some time with me- so fun! Amazing what some laughter, cupcakes, and working on a stupid assignment until 1 AM with your mother will do for a girl. Try it sometime. My parents are the GREATEST. I was finally beginning to calm down from the stresses, but still feeling like I just can't balance everything in life out quite right.
THEN THE MAIL CAME:
You all know I love getting mail..obviously. It's the only way of communicating with my best pal across the country. Without really knowing the extent of what is going on in my life, this is the advice he chose to include in his short letter. "So let me give you words from an apostle, Elder Bednar. We met him awhile back and we got to ask him questions. One question was asked 'How do you keep everything balanced in your life?' And this is what he said, 'You can't keep it all balanced together. It's impossible. It's like those Chinese people who spin plates on a stick. They have a stick with a plate spinning at the top and they put it on their leg. Then they add another one. They see the first on starting to fall so they go back and spin that one. Then back to the second one. Then they add a third one. They can not spin them all at the same time, it's one by one.'"
And that my friends is exactly what he wrote and exactly what I needed to hear. For real. How does he do that?? Answer to my prayers. Just goes to show that Heavenly Father is listening and will answer us in the strangest of ways. (Or through your best friend who is oddly connected to you and your needs...) But there you have it folks, ya can't balance life. It's impossible. I just gotta do the best I can with making time and focusing on one thing at a time. Whew...glad I finally have that understood.
Thanks for checking in on me, I hope you haven't been bored to tears with this post. Here is hoping that you all can work on one plate at a time. Love you all!
Kisses, Whit

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi EE, I love you! I am glad that you are figuring out how to balance your busy busy life! I definitely can relate to you. I hope that school is going well!

Jo-Mamma said...

You are so wise, witty, and wonderful! I'm glad we could spend time together too, (even if it meant nearly starving you to death while waiting at the dealership for hours!) I loved helping you with homework, sharing cupcakes, coconut DP's, and seeing a great chick flick!! School IS stressful, but it will be worth it! You'll never regret getting your education especially now, because life gets more stressful when the hubby and kids come along(more plates to spin)! WE LOVE YOU and LOVE HELPING YOU!!

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness...I'm glad I'm not the only who feels like I'm losing half the time....That missionary of yours is doing good :) That advice is kind of what I needed to hear too. You're great! (ps, mine came home this week...SO WEIRD!)

Shoecrazy Sue said...

EE JO BECK! You are a wise girl to figure this balance thing out so young. You are exactly right, we just do the best that we can and as soon as we think we have it figured out, we go into a totally difference phase of life and have to figure that out! You will do just fine!!