I read a poem this morning. The title: Ode. The first line: Here’s to everything undone today. I immediately felt relief…to start the day with accepting that stuff will remain undone. It’s almost magical to think this way. No resistance or hand wringing or awful self judgment. I lifted my head up, I looked out the window. I said to myself…stuff will remain undone today. Pause. Deep breath in and out. I found my mantra: Stuff will remain undone today.

You know what I felt? Freedom. The freedom that comes from lifting my attention from the grindstone of having to make it happen and check it off my list. (I always have a list. Truth be told, I have two. Plus a calendar. That’s another story.) What will be done will be done, and the rest will remain undone. I felt freedom and also a responsibility. A responsibility to prioritize my choices to honor myself and how I want to be in the world.

You know, most things can wait. Thankfully, life or death decisions are rare. There are usually very few items that must be crossed off the list. Think about it…many things stay undone all of the time. So what?

So, take a deep breath and look out the window. Undone is not a failure. It’s simply undone. Until it’s not.

Much love always
Paula

Ode, By Zoe Higgins, from The Path to Kindness, Poems of Connection and Joy, edited by James Crews