Your Monday, My Saturday

As usual, my four days in at the office went by in a blur.  And, as usual, I feel like I got nothing accomplished there!  Such seems to be life, eh?

Last night was Family Reading Night with my folks.  Mama Pea read stories from the woods, from the writings of a local outdoor author.  I read the first chapters of the first of two books a high school friend has written.  She's a high school valedictorian cum Ivy League graduate cum breast cancer & reconstructive surgery survivor cum most successful stripper in Portland!  Papa Pea read two articles, one of which was titled something like 'The 18 Most Important Things I Learned From My Father'.


One of the 18 lessons was to realize the difference between (and then act accordingly) the things that are IMPORTANT and those which are (or, more to the point, seem) URGENT.  I asked him to read that portion again, and then we all discussed it.  Because I, at first, didn't understand what the difference was (a-ha - which is the POINT!).  To me, anything urgent is also important, and vice versa.  But, no, that's NOT how we should look at them.

Case in point:  today, the grass needs to be mowed.  Too, I've had on my To Do list for WELL over a year an important, long (ha - I just realized I used the descriptive 'important'!) letter that needs to be written to dear, dear friends who were second parents to me when I lived in the little house down by the lake.  So, why hasn't that letter gotten written in these past 365 days (or more)?  Because it wasn't urgent.  Is it important?  Oh, yeah!  If they were killed in a car crash tomorrow (god forbid!) would I forever be kicking myself that I hadn't gotten that letter written and delivered?  To let them know that I love them and think of them on a nearly daily basis?  You bet.  So, why does the lawn always get mowed (or whatever) but the letter not written?  Because I was putting the priority on those items I felt were urgent INSTEAD OF those which really ARE important.  Is the lawn going to be there tomorrow or next week?  Are these dear, dear friends?  I can only hope so!  But, what if they're not?  What if they've already written me off in their lives because they haven't heard from me in so long?  What if they're hurt by my long silence?  Which is more IMPORTANT?  The urgent call of the long grass or . . . people you love?

It's a shame that it took me until the reading last night to finally "get it".  But, now that I have it, this knowledge, I'm gonna try hard to REMEMBER it . . . and act accordingly.

Peace out.