At the beginning of this year, I began to think of what my One Word for the year might be. The word simplify immediately came to mind and I had to smile. If there was ever a word I needed to grow into - it was that word.
I never thought of myself as a complicated person, but I sure can be! Many years ago, I took a quiz meant to reveal my strong gifts. "Teaching" was one, which surprised me. The other was no surprise - it was "organization." Let me tell you - I can take a simple task and organize it to the point that it's unrecognizable from the original! Whether it's a schedule for house cleaning, quiet devotional time, a budget, an upcoming trip. . . . . the list can go on and on. When I was younger and working full time as a nurse, it was helpful. But now, being retired with time on my hands and a brain that seems to leave me occasionally, it's not as good. With my senior brain, over-organizing makes for confusion. I look at my organization, re-do it, and then decide it's just not worth the effort.
God has slowly been showing me where simple is just better. And that goes for more than just organizing a junk drawer in the kitchen or a storage closet. It can be deciding what to invest my time in, how to do it and then, (of course) how to organize how I do it. Here are some examples.
CLUTTER
Right now, I'm working on clutter. Not especially junk and broken things that needed to be thrown out ages ago. Instead, I'm looking at projects and the things that go along with those projects that I'm having to realistically think through. At one time, I wanted to be an accomplished quilter. I bought lots and lots of "charm packs" and quilt squares as well as yardages. I bought special thread and needles used for quilting. I had books with patterns of lovely quilts. And I tried to get into it. . . . I really did. But I found that I enjoyed seeing beautiful quilts rather than making them. And yet, in my storage closet, there it all is, taunting me.
MOUNTAIN DULCIMER
I fell in love with the sound of a dulcimer the first time I heard it. I bought a cheapie one off Ebay and ended up giving it to a grandson. Then I bought a "slightly-better-than-a-cheapy" which I had modified to add an extra fret. It is tucked away in its case under the bed. Lastly, I bought a McSpadden dulcimer which is one of the top-of-the-line models. I bought books, attended some classes via Zoom and then realized that if I was going to decently play this instrument, I had to practice. So. . . . as you might guess,. . . I organized my time and books and lessons to begin learning. But my effort wasn't accomplishing my unrealistic expectations. I was impatient and I became apathetic. My McSpadden now hangs on the wall taunting me.
QUIET TIME WITH THE LORD
This is the hardest one to admit to. I have an abundance of devotional books, Bibles, bullet journals for notes, and even a Bible study with fill-in-the-blanks. I've got a set of those wonderful Pigma micron pens to underline and make my Bible look very well used. I have colored pencils for highlighting. All I have to do now is "organize" how I'm going to do all this. Do you see the issue here? Apparently, what that quiz of many years ago failed to mention is that, while I'm strong on organization, I'm not very strong on carrying through.
So far, God is showing me that to "simplify" means to trust Him and let Him guide me. He's showing me how to tackle each bit of clutter and decision with His instruction. What does that look like in light of what I've just written?
It means looking at craft supplies or books or DVDs or dust collectors or whatever is feeling like "clutter" and placing them in a box and then putting them in the car and then driving them to the local thrift shop. It means being realistic as to how I really want to spend my time and that just because that quilt is pretty, doesn't mean I have to make one. It means having to reach deep inside and ask myself a lot of questions. . . . "Do I really want to do this and, if so, why?"
It means finding one song I really would like to play on the dulcimer and pecking away it until I can play it. It means enjoying the music and what I can do with the dulcimer without the expectation of winning "Dulcimer Player of the Year." It means being patient with myself when my senior brain just isn't into it that day.
It also means just sitting down with a cup of coffee and my Bible and reading - from a Bible reading plan or just simply where my eyes land. It means asking God what He wants to say to me in that passage. It means sitting back and just talking to him. Maybe I'll have a pen in my hand to scribble a note or maybe not. Time with my Father is what is most important.
This has been a bit long-winded so if you've made it thus far, I'm impressed. I'm learning day by day and I'm positive there is a lot more God has to show me.
