“Measure not the work…

…until the day’s out and the labor done.” ― Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Greetings, sports fans! (That’s what my father used to say to us when we were smaller. I’ve never asked why the ‘sports fans,’ since he’s not especially sport-oriented. I like it regardless!)

Today’s post is a finger exercise. Jen Louden brings all sorts of neat self-discovery things into the world, and this is from one of them.

She opens with a riff on finishing things, “a big finishing, like coming home from work or a day out in the world, or a small one like folding the laundry or writing a thank you note.” Which is syncing up for my day today, since it was strangely tidy. That is, it was full of solid stopping places and finished tasks. I’ve kept this prompt in my email inbox for a couple of weeks, so I think I’ll finish it, too, to round out my day.

This week, when I notice I am in transition, I might invite myself to pause and…

Smile. Smiling makes a great celebration when it’s combined with a pause. I’ve been doing that today, and the pause-smile combination makes for a satisfying day’s end.

Where or when am I trying to fix myself, make myself better, feel sure that I need to show up different than I am?

I think I’m okay here. By the way, I SHIPPED THE SFD! “F” now stands for “fifth.” Or maybe “sixth.” But I didn’t fix myself in order to finish; I just sat patiently with myself until I quit fidgeting. Parenting skills can be widely applicable.

In the stillness, in the busyness, in the whole of it all, what wants to be heard?

I suspect I’m listening so hard these days that nothing wants to be heard anymore. Instead it wants to just go do its thing without being hovered over. Because when I think about “hearing,” the backs of my shoulders hunch, just a little. But considering stepping out of my self-referential loop feels about the same. Huh.

If I shaped the coming week with my body as my ally, what might I choose to do… or not do…

Since finding that Nero Wolfe quote, I have been shaping my sleep: being more strict about when I go to bed AND when I get up. It was challenging this (Thursday) morning, because a sinus has filled up and tried draining all night long. Bleah, and sleep-disruptive. But I mostly made it. This waking-up links me back to a stretch (this spring?) when I similarly kept greeting the day, and felt good in body and in mind. Sometime maybe I’ll get up early enough to swim with Coach Paul-!

What inspiration am I hungry for this week?

Hungry for? I would like a dove descending, or a bolt from the blue…as per usual. Hm. My bucket is nicely sloshy right now with “shipped the essay!” satisfaction. Plus I feel crispy when I think of “greater, higher, stretch and reach” inspiration, likely since 2015 became a substantial chunk of the SFD. As I told a friend at the start of June, I’m beginning to feel like myself again…but that doesn’t mean I yet have reserves.

What do I want to be attentive to this week?

Attentive, hm. I want to attend to my daily rhythms. It’s almost the weekend, which drops a large rock in whatever wave I get going. But I would like it if I wrapped the momentum I have now across into Monday and Tuesday.

 

PS: While we’re talking about me, me, me, I’m balancing on 150lbs. Almost 25lbs smaller than when I started the half-plate project. Something worth celebrating, each half-pound of the way!

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