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Do it later; or maybe not at all

I was browsing through the Audible Plus catalogue the other day. (Hi, I’m Tia, I’m an audiobook addict…) and came across an audiobook called ‘Do it Now. Overcoming Procrastination.’ And isn’t it sad that my first thought was “I’ll look at it later”?


Or maybe it’s not sad because looking at the catalogue was part of a wider project. (Good excuse that one. Please feel free to borrow it. ‘Yes, the house is upside down at the moment. It’s part of a wider project to declutter it,’ works like a charm for me; as long as I don’t use it too often.)


In this case, the wider project is to use my time wisely. No more reading the news obsessively when it’s not as if I can change it. No more browsing the internet absently. No one needs a Pinterest board on how to organise your airing cupboard. (Although there are some truly beautiful airing cupboards out there, and mine is now reorganised and looks good and will look even better when I’ve used up all the stuff I found while I was sorting it out.)


I decided I needed little moments of calm spread throughout the day. Not great big long periods because my life never seems to work like that. In fact, sitting down seems to result in cries of ‘Can you?’ or ‘Have you got a minute?” I don’t know how people manage it when they can’t see me, but they do, and I bet I’m not the only one.


Obviously, I am hoping that you’ll be thinking ‘Hey, great idea. I could buy Tia’s latest book and make a little ritual out of reading a bit. Maybe with a cup of tea or coffee and a biscuit. Or a glass of wine if that’s your thing. But I really, really hope that you’ll take some time just for yourself each day to do something you want to even if it means doing a little bit of procrastination.


Because you see, there’s that old thing about putting your oxygen mask on before you help other people and I have a nasty suspicion that it isn’t coincidental that the kindest and most empathic people I know are also the ones who burn out.


So today, please, do something just for yourself even if it’s only for five minutes. The dust doesn’t go on a rampage and take over the earth if you don’t do the dusting. (I know this from personal experience.) Unless there’s blood, a child really can amuse themselves for five minutes, and you’re building their independence and self-reliance skills, which has got to be a good thing. But you deserve five minutes of peace; and so do I!


Till then, here’s a picture of a lovely empty beach. Maybe we can all meet up there in spirit and none of us will ask anyone to do anything except sit and enjoy the peace.




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