Leaving things undone

“Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone… The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials.”                         ~Lin Yutang, Chinese writer and educator

I want to enjoy every day and feel that I’ve lived it fully.  And yet of course I am entirely preoccupied with our upcoming move(s).  We are buying a lovely house that we are renovating (REALLY fun – separate post coming soon) and in the meantime we will live in an apartment for 3 months starting a week from today.  There is so much to do! Today I hung up a very large white piece of paper (maybe 10 feet by 4 feet) and made lists of things still to do in our current house (namely PACK and cancel utilities), things to do for the apartment, things to do in the new house, things unknown right now, questions for our realtor, a timeline of tasks, etc.  Anyone who has moved knows how mired down you can get in the little details.  By the end of the day (and by end, I mean 6pm), I can barely keep my eyes open.

People move every day.  It’s such a mundane thing and seems silly to worry too much about.  And yet, we will be creating our home.   There’s also the small fact that I still need to care for my daughter every day.  If I spend too much time on the phone or doing something else, she tends to remind me to come back to the present. 

A dear friend reminded me recently to enjoy all these transitions, and so I will try.  When I felt overwhelmed today, I consciously sat down for a tea party with my daughter.  Staying focused on the now does help make a gigantic change feel less scary! (I am nervous and curious to see our house of the past 8 years sitting empty.) I am trying to simplify.  I tell myself that I don’t need each box packed perfectly.  Just get it all in and seal it up, label it, stack it, and get back to the tea party.