Whirlwinds....Just Breathe In

Today is one of those days that from the very moment I open my eyes until I go to sleep tonight at a yet to be determined time, I am going to be unfathomably busy, and undoubtedly behind.  There is so much to get done that I haven't even had time to make a To Do List to check off and am slightly afraid to try.  The reality of how much I am doing/need to get done staring me in the face may be my complete undoing, causing me to grab the bowl of the Halloween candy that remains and curling up under a blankie with a chic lit book in an appropriate shade of pink - occasionally peeking out to see if the day is over yet, and then going back into hiding.

As wonderful as that sounds, it is not going to help accomplish anything on my list.  I will invariably feel even more negative about it later, and may not even let myself feel accomplished.  I plan on letting myself feel accomplished tonight - but what about this morning?

Before 8 am I had the chickens watered and fed, the kids dressed, had showered, loaded the van with another load of school supplies to take to the office, searched the dilapidated shed RV for missing boxes and cookie cutters, rinsed the dishes and put them in the dishwasher, and delegated about six chores to each child.  I called Sunshine out to take Ares, I took Zeus, and off we headed on a walk.

It is a warm but blustery day in these parts, and the dogs were too excited walking on their leashes to behave properly. Zeus weighs over 80 lbs, and Ares is almost 100 with both as tall as me when they stand up on their hind legs, so when they are misbehaving and pulling on their leashes, they are truly pulling.  I called out to have Sunshine head in a different direction and hoped for a  somewhat more mild walk with just Zeus and I taking turns pulling each other along.  I knew that I had exactly 10 minutes and 27 seconds or so to give him a walk, which is not what either of us would prefer. 

The phrase "Stop and smell the roses" has been analyzed and fragmented ad infinitum.  SO I am not going to say it, but I am going to say this.  Breathe.  As I half ran behind Zeus, tripping in wet flip flops along the muddy dirt road, I took a big breath in.  In that breath I caught the whiff of all things that make fall smell wonderful - leaves (technically the mold and decay of the leaves), earth, wood smoke.  I smelled the smells of rainy days and living by the river.  I breathed out and tugged Zeus to come along as he explored the ditch and smells on his own.

 Then I realized that breath felt really good, so I did it again.

I could only take one more breath before Zeus and I had to pick up speed so we wouldn't fall behind on the day, but those three short breaths that I was able to take and focus just on what was around me, not ahead or behind, made it better.

So breathe.  Breathe the smell of baby lotion, crayons, and play doh (sometimes all in one diaper!).  Breathe the fabric softener, the chicken soup, the dish soap bubbles.  Breathe the muddy shoes, the peanut butter and jelly, the fresh brushed teeth.

Breathe.

And if at the end of the day, you have breathed, you have done enough