Finding Time to Play

The Simple Abundance passages for the past week or so have been about finding time for you to pursue hobbies. And the reason I haven’t posted until now is that I’m junk at this: failed, rubbish, rotten. I have a mountain of photos to put into scrapbooks that I get to about twice a year right now. I make it to the gym … in fits and starts.

I usually read the novel for book club, frantically, the night before. I have loads of craft/art supplies that I hardly ever touch. Sarah suggests we take one hour each day to pursue this important time for the soul. We are supposed to put ourselves on the priority list … but this is so much easier said than done.

So, how is a person … a wife and mommy … supposed to find this hour? This has been my project for the past week. I don’t watch much television, mostly because we only have one and the kids usually have the Wii going when I think I might want to watch it. But that would be a good place to start for some.

I spend a lot of time volunteering in the community and would benefit from delegating a bit better. And living in such a remote location, I spend a ridiculous amount of time driving … it’s 40 minutes to the nearest grocery store, over an hour to the veterinarian, 2.5 hours to the airport. But for me, I think the barrier to having that hour to myself, is my tendency to do just one more thing. I’m never happy until the job is completely done. And by job, I mean that endless pile of domestic “things that need doing” that are constantly being undone by my beloved family. I’ve never been good at accepting “good enough”.

We’ve lived in this house for exactly one year, and so I’ve been spending some time recently cleaning out cupboards and closets … clearing out the clutter and dust bunnies from a year’s worth of living. And so this past week, my goal was to work for a while, and then say, “that’s enough for today” and do something creative afterward. I did well some days and less well on others. I think it’s a learned habit … but one worth learning. Because on the days I took that hour, I felt calmer and happier. The creative itch had been scratched.

I’d love to hear how you find the time to pursue creative things. Until next time …