I’m currently pulling a bunch of weeds and ground cover in my front yard’s landscaping. This is a multi-day project because I let it get so bad. I’m embarrassed to admit I re-mulch maybe 2-3 times a year because no matter what I do – the weeds and ground cover come back every time.
I am also a single parent and have a limited monthly budget or I would just pay someone else to handle it. So this week as I’m crouched down and hunched over wanting to curse at these weeds for existing, I realize it could be a metaphor of some of my own character defects in life.
I definitely struggle with procrastination and am currently on a mission to get everything to have a proper place in my home so there is less clutter. I am also wanting to make sure I don’t just pile up all the clean laundry on that chair in the corner of my room. I always think – “I’ll have more time later”. It’s the same with the weeds – it feels too big of an undertaking so I just push it off again and again.
Then I started thinking – what if I was just as determined as those stubborn weeds and ground cover to push through anything that feels “hard” so that I can grow? Because those damn weeds will probably exist until the end of time. I just read Atomic Habits by James Clear and my mind is starting to think a bit differently. I highly recommend this book if procrastination is also a struggle. I love the suggestion of doing a habit, and then giving myself a reward. So as soon as I was done with my alloted hour in the front yard today, I watched an episode of “The Rookie” as I’m trying to fully catch up before the next season. It’s my current comfort show. I can get lazy sometimes and binge a TV show like nobody’s business. So if I tell myself I need to do this one good, productive thing first, then maybe I’m slowly pulling my weed of “laziness” and trying to replace it with more productive habits. I figure it’s worth a try.
My daily goal is to learn and grow in some way so that I can be a better version of myself than I was yesterday. Some days are just harder than others and I have to give myself grace when I miss the mark. I will be a work in progress until the day I die.
What are some things you percieve as “hard” that you can start working on? Sometimes just starting to do things differently is the hardest step, but once you get past the point of making the decision, it gets a little easier. Sometimes just a change in perspective can make all the difference in the world.
The Worldly Condition 