The Problem of Being Intentional. Or Not.
It's a buzz phrase these days: Intentional. It sounds so...purposeful, determined, self-directed, controlled.
Sounds almost too good to be true.
Let me just put this out there. I am intentional about a very few things in my life.
And the rest, well, I like to leave the door wide open for the spontaneous. Don't get me wrong - this can be problematic too. Because I want to allow room for people who come along who weren't on my to-do list (if I really had one, which I don't usually).
I'd like to be intentional about so much, but I just don't seem to have that gift. I do think it must be a gift. It is a gift given to the driven, type A - and well, I'm just a type B, or C or maybe a Q or X or Z. Haven't figured that out yet, and being a non-type A, I may just never get around to typing myself into a category. Which is really okay, because who has time to stare inward - navel-gazing, I call it - ad nauseum figuring out where I really fit into some category or such.
I'm a Mom with 5 kids, ages 13 down to 3. I am up to my eyeballs in just living. I'd love to pretend I'm soaring on the glory of parenthood - and I do have those moments daily - being such a spontaneous, unplanned, un-intentional type, I do take time to smell the flowers and the sweaty hugs and morning breath of the kids that crawl all over me before I really want to get up. It's more wonderful than it sounds - I just can't describe it to you!
The thing I am intentional about seems to be being anti-social. Now - not in the terribly negative, rude, off-putting sense. No - I'm anti-social in the sense of feeling obligated to run hither and yon to every social event there is. I feel maxed out just socializing with a broad range of children. And I love being social one-on-one. I just don't do well with the chit-chatty general socialness of society. So, I'm intentional about preserving my social energies and limit myself to whatever is realistic - which really isn't much. I guess I'll just ask for forgiveness and understanding when it comes to my lack of socialness.
And I share this for you who may be type A or B or Z. Because I'd like you to know you don't have to perform, you don't have to win the gregarious prize. You don't need to worry what everyone thinks of you. Because if you just hang onto your sanity and snuggle a kid or two each day, you're doing just fine. Forget trying to do it all. If doing it all is stressing you out, just start being intentional about disengaging from society, just a little bit. I may be accused of being selfish (which would be spot on).
But I am not trying to win a popularity contest.
Relax.
Be intentional, if that's your gift. And if it's not, just be intentional about what really matters, and let the rest of your life flow from the joy
of living
for an audience
of One.
Sounds almost too good to be true.
Let me just put this out there. I am intentional about a very few things in my life.
And the rest, well, I like to leave the door wide open for the spontaneous. Don't get me wrong - this can be problematic too. Because I want to allow room for people who come along who weren't on my to-do list (if I really had one, which I don't usually).
I'd like to be intentional about so much, but I just don't seem to have that gift. I do think it must be a gift. It is a gift given to the driven, type A - and well, I'm just a type B, or C or maybe a Q or X or Z. Haven't figured that out yet, and being a non-type A, I may just never get around to typing myself into a category. Which is really okay, because who has time to stare inward - navel-gazing, I call it - ad nauseum figuring out where I really fit into some category or such.
I'm a Mom with 5 kids, ages 13 down to 3. I am up to my eyeballs in just living. I'd love to pretend I'm soaring on the glory of parenthood - and I do have those moments daily - being such a spontaneous, unplanned, un-intentional type, I do take time to smell the flowers and the sweaty hugs and morning breath of the kids that crawl all over me before I really want to get up. It's more wonderful than it sounds - I just can't describe it to you!
The thing I am intentional about seems to be being anti-social. Now - not in the terribly negative, rude, off-putting sense. No - I'm anti-social in the sense of feeling obligated to run hither and yon to every social event there is. I feel maxed out just socializing with a broad range of children. And I love being social one-on-one. I just don't do well with the chit-chatty general socialness of society. So, I'm intentional about preserving my social energies and limit myself to whatever is realistic - which really isn't much. I guess I'll just ask for forgiveness and understanding when it comes to my lack of socialness.
And I share this for you who may be type A or B or Z. Because I'd like you to know you don't have to perform, you don't have to win the gregarious prize. You don't need to worry what everyone thinks of you. Because if you just hang onto your sanity and snuggle a kid or two each day, you're doing just fine. Forget trying to do it all. If doing it all is stressing you out, just start being intentional about disengaging from society, just a little bit. I may be accused of being selfish (which would be spot on).
But I am not trying to win a popularity contest.
Relax.
Be intentional, if that's your gift. And if it's not, just be intentional about what really matters, and let the rest of your life flow from the joy
of living
for an audience
of One.
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