BUSY is The New Four Letter Word?

I’m busy. So very busy. I can’t believe how busy I am. And he’s so busy. And she’s too busy. And don’t even bother with them, they’re really quite busy.

And things aren’t going to suddenly get less busy. Unless you become incarcerated. Or you slip into a coma.

Work, kids, activities, social engagements, chores, errands, the pursuit of happiness–these things take time and we get busy and yes, there’s gettin’ busy, which also requires time. A little anyway. Hi honey.

I often ask incredulously, “How is it possible that I’m SO busy? I work from home, part-time.” The fact is, life is as busy as it we allow it to become. That’s deep. I need to italicize that.

Having a full and active life isn’t a bad thing. But, when it causes you to shirk certain responsibilities like calling your ninety year old grandpa on a regular basis or to let important relationships slide, busy becomes a four letter word.

We can always find time to surf the net, watch a movie, get our hair done. We’re not too busy for those things.

So when we tell someone we’re too busy to see them, to call them, to check in with them, in essence we are saying, “I could meet you for coffee, but I’d rather hang out at home in my pyjamas and tweet while I drink coffee on my comfy couch. Sorry. I’m just too busy.”

We don’t mean any harm.

We’re just TIRED…another ugly four letter word.

When we’re tired, we gravitate toward things we enjoy and that are easy.

Though I have reservations about resolutions, I’m making one this year. I’ve had a revelation and I’m starting a revolution. I’m setting aside my reservations for a revelation inspired resolution revolution.

Put simply, I resolve to MAKE the time to be more thoughtful. To nurture the relationships that mean something. To put aside the “busy” and focus on what matters. 

Who’s with me?  And please don’t say you’re too busy.

* Addendum: Tired is actually five letters, not four, as pointed out by a friend who is clearly not as tired as I am. 

10 Comments

  • It's almost like a competition sometimes where we try to one up each other about how busy we are. I too will try to be less busy and more thoughtful.

  • Sharon, I'd have responded sooner but I was soooo busy. WAY busier than you! LoL! Um, YOU are the most thoughtful person I'm the world. You and your damn kindness and generosity have raised the bar. Speaking of bars…pub night soon? Although, I'll probably be busy so…

  • I am so guilty of this in so many areas of my life. I am so *busy* that I forget to do so many things. It is rude and I am going to try ad change.

  • Great post Lis! Agreed, we are all just too busy!! I'm probably the queen of saying I'm busy. So, I'm definitely jumping on your too busy resolution/revolution train but let me check my schedule first (kidding!). Coffee soon?

  • Awesome post! A friend of mine wrote something quite similar about 2 years ago and I've never forgotten it – and in fact have attempted to eliminate the 'b' word from my lexicon. I tell people my life is FULL, and most days delightfully so! And I cringe at the fact that I once as a mother of 1 thought I was 'busy'…and then I had a second…and then twins…and well…we're full!

  • Perfect timing for this post! Yesterday I was late meeting someone & she snarkily said "Why don't you just stop doing so much?! Then you wouldn't always be late!" Ouch. It made me think & what I realized was…
    …. she was full of crap.

    I choose to fill my days up as I do & what the heck if I'm a few minutes late…. like, always…. the point is I do eventually get there! 🙂

    Psst… as much as I love your post, I hate to be the one to tell you that "tired" is actually a five letter word. And yes, I did have to read the word 12 times and count on my fingers to verify that…

  • Eileen! I just laughed so hard right now. You're are indeed correct, tired is indeed 5 letters, not 4. Hahahahahahaha. See? This demonstrates how tired i really am. Oh my god. Hilarious.

  • I'm on board. I want to spend my time with those that matter most….my family. I cannot ever be too busy to spend quality time with them. That is my goal this year because I feel that I didn't do a very good job of that last year. Time for change!

    Shell

All images and text are copyright © 2020 Forever In Mom Genes