How did it get to be so late so soon?
Dr. Seuss
Today,I feel as disjointed as this installation by Jonathan Saiz. I have been away from home for at least part of the last five days. This morning, I faced what seemed like an impossible job. I had a planner filled with tasks I needed to complete and not enough time to get them done. Calls to make, texts to send, sheets to change, laundry to do, and this blog to post. In addition to the usual daily minutiae of everyday life.
I retired when I was seventy. During the time I worked, I managed to take care of a home and family. How have things changed? Am I out of practice? Becoming decrepitude, God forbid? What’s the problem? I use to think that when I retired, there would be fewer balls to juggle and life would slow down. I now find there is still juggling involved, only the balls are different.
I recognize much of this was my own choice. I am not the type of person to withdraw from life and install myself in a rocking chair. Still, I wonder if I’m making the best use of my time. Could I be more efficient? Possibly, lower my standards a bit.
I have been thinking about a neighbor I once had. She kept her mail in the oven. At the time, I thought it was a strange thing to do. Now, in a peculiar way, it makes sense. She rarely cooked and received a lot of mail. Putting it in the oven kept it out of the way. I do use my oven and am not overloaded with mail. However, maybe there are other things I could do to make my life easier. I might be stuck in a rut and need to think outside the box.
Peace be with you.
Aging with Grace 
8 responses to “Juggling Time”
My mom always complaints that she has retired she gets nothing done because not having a routine kind of make her feel all over the place; my dad , on the other side, complains she is all over places and spends more in petrol than when she used to drive 60 km a day to go to work 😂
LikeLike
⭐️ Your mom and I would get along.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great minds think alike as they say😉have a lovely day🥰
LikeLike
❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person
I retired 2.5 years ago….It has taken me a long time for my life to ‘settle in’ to retirement. I’m still discovering who I am with all this free time. (No children, and no family nearby).
A few words of advice that worked for me. when people find out you are retired, they imagine you have acres of free time to help them with xyz. Let them know how much time you can give them, realistically. I have a huge habit of overgiving (probably in order to get much needed valiidation, attention, or companionship…) This serves no one well. I’m still struggling with this.
A few words of advice that worked for me, may/may not work for you. Take the word “should” out of your vocabulary. Instead spend your time on ‘desires”, creativity, fun, getting outside (without having to weed that garden!)
Use your notebook or calendar only for appointments (dentist, doctor, or lunches you want to attend with friends.) And leave all the chores OFF that calendar! Otherwise it looks like a drudgery to get through the day. Eventually the dishes and laundry will take care of itself, on your time, not the calendars.
Another great piece of advice from a friend of mine was the word BALANCE. Bingo, I found a word that would bring me back to myself. Is today feeliing balanced? What do I need in order to feel that?
In retirement, you choose what your life looks liike. Those texts can wait, those emails can wait. I can’t sum up sufficiently what I want to say, but good luck finding balance!
LikeLike
⭐️ Your advice is appreciated. Sometimes when we are in the middle of a situation it’s hard to see it clearly. I’ve written BALANCE at the top of my planner for this week. (I’m still having problems with the “Like” option on Word Press.)
LikeLike
There has never been a retired person I have spoken to, who hasn’t said that they were busier, when they retired than they were when they were raising a family, working and engaged in the world
LikeLike
Your comments reminded me of the quote,”When you want something done ask a busy person.” I think at might be us.❤️
LikeLike