Be set in your ways

...to be flexible. What a paradoxical statement - and yet that is the life we have and have to live as Mrs. Pastor - at least that's how I live.

People who know me know that I like (pre) planning as much as possible. I mean, it's such a good feeling to start off your day knowing what you hope to achieve; then it's so wonderful to look back on your day & have everything on your "To do" list ticked off as "done". Why put off till tomorrow what you can do today? Indeed - why?

Thomas Jefferson said:

"Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today."

This is profound (& very sound) advice especially when the choice is between what you need (or want) to do for yourself and what others need (or want) you to do for them - and even that needs to be carefully considered.

I remember that when I was younger, I heard (& actually believed) that procastination was a sin. Now I know better - it is not a sin but could be - it's all about being able to identify/prioritize between urgent, important, necessary and "can-do-withouts".

At the risk of encouraging procastination, I agree with Mark Twain who may have humourously said: "Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow." There are some things that are important but not urgent and conversely some urgent things that are not important - the key is in knowing the difference and prioritizing them accordingly. I cannot count how many times I've planned to do my family cooking and then ended up going out to deal with other people's matters or to get things that I may need next year but not get at the price it is being offered at today. It's quite the juggling act - something will always give. A list of "Things that can be deferred" could work... 

Another example that comes to mind is when we need to drop everything to fulfill a promise made to a child or to attend to a church member's need. If you take a moment to critically analyze the situation, it may not be urgent - it's just important enough to drop whatever you're doing at the time to do it immediately or as quickly as possible - especially as we must be WoI (Women of Integrity).

For these and more reasons, as Mrs. Pastor, I've learned to be set in my ways and remain flexible...ready to go whenever to wherever. Life is almost less stressful that way...what have you found between your "to do" and "can be deferred" lists?