So I'm giving a talk in church on Sunday, and my subject is a talk by Pres. Uchtdorf entitled "Of Things That Matter Most." In it his main message is that despite the pressure to have it all and do it all, sometimes we need to simplify our lives and focus on the things that matter most. As Mahatma Gandhi taught, "there is more to life than increasing its speed." There are seasons in our life where extreme focus and hard work are necessary, and there are times when we are dealing with struggles beyond what we are used to. In times like those, we need to focus on the basics and keep a slow and steady pace. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. For example, over the weekend I thought of all these things I wanted to accomplish in the new week. I had this fiery zeal and couldn't wait to blaze forward. And then I got a sore throat, a fever, aching body, etc. It seems like that always happens, something always tries to derail me. I made a list of the things I wanted to accomplish, and instead of doing all of them, or crawling under the covers to sleep it off, I tackled soft little mini-versions of my goals. Though I didn't get everything done that I wanted to, I got a good start, and it'll be that much less to do tomorrow. In fact, I went for a walk (in the rain) and got a lot of inspiration for my book. Had a wonderful night with my family, and got an email about a job offer. And though I am mostly excited just to sleep right now, I can't help but feel a small sense of accomplishment, despite the icky taste of nyquil in my mouth...
“Diligence is a good thing, but taking things easy is much more restful” - Mark Twain
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