Ready for September? by Brenda J. Wood

 

The question for bloggers this month is: Are you ready for September? Are you ready to move ahead with your writing. I ponder the question and wonder if I'm even ready for it.

I have a book in limbo. it needs one or two small adjustments and it can go to the publisher. It has needed those one or two small adjustments for several weeks now and I dither over them. It's not a big job and yet I linger in Lala Land. No one else is going to do the small stuff if I want the book published. I have to send it to the publisher and yet I linger. Is that you? Is today's life kind of sticking you to the page of unfinished.

My neighbour, a hoarder, just moved and threw out tons of unfinished projects. There were probably 15 quilts all cut out, labelled, and ready to put together, yet nothing was sewn. There were probably 15 bags of yarn purchased with a fine thought of beautiful socks, sweaters, and hats for the family. All not done. Oh, she started all right. Things were cut out and the cuff of a sweater was done and on its needles, but nothing was finished.

So, what are we if we don't finish? What happens in our whole life if we never finish things. What if we decide to stop raising our children when they reach the awkward 12-year-old stage? What if we handed off that responsibility? Or what if we were making a casserole and decided to leave out the meat or the cheese or the vegetables? Unfinished is more than unfinished.

Unfinished can be a lifestyle that drains us into nothingness, and when our end comes, all the unfinished projects will be thrown out because nobody else knows how to finish them except us. I could linger over this article, but the point is that I really have a book to send to my publisher. I have a few small things to deal with and I've decided to do them now.

My question for you is: How is your September going? True, some people make January their New Year's Resolution time. But we have a chance to change halfway or three-quarters of the way through the year. So, I am publishing my book, called Words for the Spiritually Disenchanted. Will we be disenchanted when we get to the end of our time and think of all the projects that we never finished? That last piece of trim where we ran out of paint, the letter to Aunt Bessie that we never sent, or the dinner we ate a bite or two of and left to rot on the table.

My friend, how is your September going? Mine is about to pick up right this minute.

Top Image by Congerdesign from Pixabay

Author, speaker and Hopestreamradio.com contributor, Brenda J Wood has been an author and motivational speaker for more years than she cares to admit. She is known for her common sense wisdom, sense of humour and quirky comments. She calls herself the ‘ABC girl’ because she’s survived and written about the ‘ABC’s of abuse, bulimia, cancer, death, entertainment, food, gluttony and humour. Since she’s written books on each of these topics, she hopes the ‘E’ word of her next book stands for something like Energy or Entertainment, but definitely not Exams or Epsom salts!

A few of her favourite things include grandchildren, guest speaking, writing, sewing, a warm fire, a good book, and pounding the pavement on early morning walks. Brenda has authored many books but is very excited about the upcoming - My Affair with Cancer, a fundraiser for the Georgian Bay Cancer Centre in Penetanguishene. Her other books include:

The Food Lover’s Devotional, food for both body and soul Gentle Humour with Jesus, devotions for the light-hearted The Pregnant Pause of Grief, the first trimester of widowhood Meeting Myself, snippets from a binging and bulging mind. Heartfelt Devotionals, 366 devotions for common sense living.
God, Gluttony & You Brenda’s Children’s books include:

The Big Red Chair –a book for grieving children
Mother Peebles Problem Pebbles
The Plate Family Dishes Up

Brenda J Wood, author and motivational speaker
http://heartfeltdevotionals.com
http://www.twitter.com/size10hopefil
https://www.facebook.com/brendawoodspeaker

Is it Time to Give Up? by Steph Beth Nickel

A modified version of this post, focusing on wellness, will appear on Kimberley Payne’s blog this month.

Giving up. Admitting defeat. Conceding failure.

None of us wants to do any of these things. But we may have to.

What should we give up?

Including too many items on our To Do list.

Oddly enough, it seems the first things we relegate to the bottom of the list are those things we know we should do. However, if we only include the most important items, our highest priorities, on our To Do list and seek to accomplish them first, we may be pleasantly surprised that we can actually add additional things to the list.

Saying yes to “just one more task.”

Many, if not most, of us feel overwhelmed by what we think we should do—at work, at home, in our community. And yet, when someone asks us to take on one more thing, especially something we’d like to do, we try hard to fit it into a schedule that already includes too much.

Not paring down our list of responsibilities.

This can be difficult. We look at our schedule and can’t imagine setting aside anything, at least not permanently. But maybe it’s time to take a hard look at our priorities and see that what we include on our To Do list lines up with those priorities. We may have to decline things we really want to do, things others think we should do, even things we promised to do. It isn’t easy, but many of us need to give it serious consideration.

Ignoring healthy habits.

Regular exercise. Healthy eating. Adequate sleep. This could be considered the trifecta of healthy living. Eventually, all our responsibilities and relationships will suffer if we don’t tend to our health. We may feel as if we don’t have time to stay active, prepare homecooked meals with fresh ingredients, and get enough sleep. However, at the risk of sounding cliché, we don’t have time not to do so.

Procrastinating.

Oddly enough, when our To Do list is too long, we often relegate the most important things to last place. These things may very well include behaviours that constitute healthy living. If we’re not willing to pare down our To Do list—either the things we really don’t have time to do well or those things we do because we’re avoiding important items on our list (things like binge watching our favourite Netflix series for example)—those things that lead to physical, emotional, and mental health will be put off for another day.

Not seeking accountability.

Some people are incredibly self-disciplined and accomplish most—if not all—of what they set their mind to. But for the rest of us, partnering up with an accountability partner can be a great way to stay on track.

What will you have to give up to accomplish what you want to do this week?