The colour was perfect, the size was all wrong. I wanted one.
I looked around for a sales assistant.
She was busy folding clothes. I stared hoping she might look up.
She finished her folding and moved to the counter, another pile of clothes there to put away.
She was busy.
She was so busy she was missing the purpose of the tidying, the actual sale.
I was bustling through the house cleaning up when a little voice called out.
“Mum, Mum, Mum can you play Scrabble with me?”
“Oh not now honey, I want to get organised before I start dinner.”
I am busy
Am I so busy I am missing the purpose of it all?
Can we become so busy preparing for the doing there is no time left to enjoy? Denying ourselves, and our family, precious moments together.
Busy is not all bad.
To a business busy with sales equals success. Busy with reporting and housekeeping, at the expense of sales, equals failure.
To a parent busy engaging with our children equals connection and joy. Busy with cleaning and cooking at the expense of a cuddle equals disappointment.
What kind of busy are you?
Although I sometimes think that the term is overused, I like the notion of practicing “mindful” busy-ness. The boring kind of busy is a necessary evil in our lives. The trick is to focus on what is important in that moment. Once again, Karen you have really made me think about what goes on in the ordinary moments of each day!
Oh yes Mo, focussing on what is important and even enjoying the busy is so wonderful. Cheers to “mindful” busyness
I think about this all the time Karen. Yet I continue to be busy busy. I’m working on it and finding it very difficult to change. However, perhaps being aware of it is a good thing. Thanks for yet another heads up!
Kelly always happy to share my own little challenges as I now realise I am not on my own with them.
Sometimes I am busy with the wrong things…working on that!
Michelle it is a work in progress for me too.
I like to have spurts of purposeful business. A half hour of getting everything necessary done so that I can enjoy the important things in life. I don’t always succeed in this pursuit but it gets easier and easier to keep on track.
Jenny I like the sound of purposeful busyness. That half hour spent getting things done and then taking the time to enjoy.
I am guilty too of being too busy for my daughter, but she always reminds me that no matter what I am doing it’s not as important as her. Unless I’m putting out a fire. This was a great post that made me think. Thank you. (Stopping by from the SITS Girls Sharefest)
Jennifer our kids have a wonderful way of reminding us of what is important.
I’m the busy bee who drones too much and doesn’t make enough sweet honey 🙁 I’m a work in progress!
I was reminded lately by a speaker (who is also a quadriplegic) that each bee only gives just 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in it’s entire lifetime. The trick is to determine what the 1/12th of a teaspoon YOU are meant to create. Coming from someone whose life is so limited and yet so rich, I found that to be a very profound lesson.
Oooopsie Adrian sorry to send you the wrong reply. I was reading 2 comments about bees and confused you both. 1/12th of a teaspoon for each bee is staggeringly small and has me appreciate that delicious sweet nectar all the more. Thank you for sharing what I agree is a profound lesson.
That’s a brilliant bit of trivia, and a great reminder of the importance of quality over quantity.
Jennifer sounds like it is time to make some sweet decadent honey.
Love that Thoreau quote! Now I’m wondering if I feel busy lately with the ‘right things’ or not. It’s too easy to get caught up in day-to-day stuff!
Oh yes Christy, that day to day stuff pulls us in and hangs on tight. I schedule my fabulous busy and then make it happen.
I always seem to feel guilty when I’m NOT busy…..probably because there is an endless amount of “things” that need doing! But…I’m learning that not everything needs to be done by a certain time or date and that it is perfectly acceptable to be NOT BUSY…at least for a little bit!
Oh Debbie the vicious cycle of busy vs guilty vs busy. On and on it goes. Yes it is PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE to be not busy.
I too sometime felt that i worked hard in my hobbies or some other things which is actually no important at a particular instance.