Impulsive Joy

Well, here we are….2010!  


I find that my closets are beginning to run out of room these days.  Early on in our marriage, my husband and I moved almost every year because of his career path.  The one positive thing that comes with frequent moves is that you really stay on top of purging what you don’t need.


Closets are not the only things that gather and hide away clutter over time.  We all gravitate toward complexity.  


It’s so much easier to add to life then to take something away.  


It’s not only our personal commitments that we need to guard against, the collective obligations of the entire family can keep us from connecting with each other.  If I had one wish for 2010, it would be to encourage us all to find one thing that we can purge.  Here are some things that you can do to help find what to let go of:

• Look at the Big Picture.  Create a calendar with all family obligations.  Include church activities, sports, volunteer commitments, work travel and even your plan for personal things like exercising and date nights (those are equally important).  If you’re anything like I am, unless it’s scheduled, it’s not happening.
• Evaluate.  Does the family calendar look like you need to hire a personal assistant to make it all happen?  How many times did you schedule a family dinner around your kitchen table?  If you aren’t able to eat together at least 4-5 times a week, something needs to go.  (Eating in the car on the way to an activity doesn’t count as “dinner together”.)
• Make some choices.  Something has to go…..So what is filling your cup up?  What is draining you?  Have each family member wrestle with what they love to do and what they can let go of for now.  If you (or your kids) enjoy multiple activities, limit yourself to only one at any given time.