Last Minute Madness

The past month has been, as seems to have become the norm, busy with plenty of comings and goings. Camping, daytrips and long weekends filled with fun and adventure.  With all these points of excitement planning and organizing becomes a necessity which is not something I struggle with so all should be good, right?

Well yes, except in those last few moments when even the most organized of people can’t help but feel just a little bit mad.  Not angry no, although occasional snips at one another do tend to pop up in these moments, I’m speaking off the lost your head kind of thing.

It seems that when leaving on either a week of vacation or a simple little day trip a few moments of last minute madness is all but inevitable.  In those last few moments when everything comes together, or fails to do so we all have our weak points.  

My own particular brand of last minute madness always centers on one thing, the idea that I’ve forgotten something.  It seems I’m unable to avoid that nagging little feeling in the back of my mind which says, indeed screams, that I am missing something.

I’ve never actually forgotten anything of importance or even kind of important. It seems that my organization skills pay off here and we have never needed to turn around to grab or do something we’ve forgotten and yet that feeling persists.

On the one hand my minds inability to trust I have everything allows me to focus on not leaving anything behind or undone yet I would rather be without that nagging feeling.  That worry, that last minute madness is something I could do without.

On (and off) the beam.

The title of this post refers to the spiritual beam, not the balance beam we have been hearing about the past several days.

In the past I have prouded myself on being “on the beam” spiritually. Unfortunately, when I am off the beam, I do not even realize it. Life takes over and I get caught up with making a few extra dollars or I get overly concerned about keeping up with how others perceive me. I suddenly cannot find the time to pray, meditate or take a deep breath and clear my mind.

Today, out of nowhere, the serenity prayer entered my mind. It was just what I needed:

God Grant Me the Serenity

To Accept the Things I Cannot Change

Courage to Change the Things I Can

And the Wisdom to Know the Difference

For me, the things I cannot change = other people.  And the things I can change = myself.

I certainly hope I am moving toward more serenity and less mental chaos.  

In other news...I've been having fun over the past few months spending some alone time with Allie, Anna and Emily.  Here's a picture from our outing yesterday:
 

Team Matters - a 100 word ramble

The best thing my husband and I do for our children is encourage them to participate in team sports.  We have seen them grow in countless ways because they are team players. Their confidence, their drive, their determination, their ability to support others has all come in part from being a team player.  They are active healthy kids who genuinely have fun win or lose and they will take from sports as much, perhaps even more, then they put into it. The friendships and the joy they get from playing on a team is definitely worth every moment of effort.

Picture Day - Manitoba

When most people think of Manitoba, if they think of it at all, it is thought of as a single stretch of flat boring land. Having travelled over a fair amount of this province I can tell you that it isn’t as boring as some would make it out to be, nor is it entirely flat. Although we didn’t drive through either Riding Mountain National Park or Duck Mountain Provincial Park (which is home to Manitoba’s tallest peak Baldy Mountain) you can see them rising in the distance along our drive.