31 Days to Improve My Domestic Church

I predicted (self-fulfilling negative prophecy?) on November 1 that in spite of my desire to write a novel in November that it would probably not happen.

I did write for a few days. I'm actually kind of excited about the story. Somehow, though November wouldn't let me win.

I'm not discouraged. I discovered other things during November. I read a book about laziness being a myth which highlighted methods for helping different types of learners. I'm homeschooling my two youngest sons, and their learning styles are extremely different from one another. Likewise, I have my own struggles with staying on task and finishing projects (as noted above!). This book helped me understand us all a little better. I need to find ways to capitalize on our strengths and use different tools to keep us on task than I needed for my older children.

In November, I also came to terms with other things about my work and my home management. I cannot do everything, but with a change in my approach and attitude, I can accomplish much more than I have recently.

What does December hold for us? With the beginning of Advent, we are shifting gears to "Prepare the Way of the Lord." We are at the beginning of a new liturgical year. I plan to make my New Year's Resolutions now instead of in January.

In what became my planning month of November, I researched blogs and books about organization and time management. I often think, "If only I can get things in order, everything else will be easier. Living Well Spending Less features a "31 Days" category for a month of changes--reducing clutter, stress, and spending. Since December has 31 days, it seems like an invitation to reduce stress and make things less scattered in my domestic church.

Today, December 1, I inventoried my pantry/freezer inventory and prepared a two-week menu plan with what's on-hand. I won't need much from the grocery store to get us through the next two weeks. Just about every organizing blog will tell you that if you know what's for dinner, everything else about the day is easier. In the past, I've planned a month at a time. Grocery shopping and meal prep were never a problem. Somehow, though, I got out of the habit, and things fell apart over the past year.

With meal-planning under control, I can focus on other things, like teaching, grading papers, and most importantly, celebrating Advent in a peaceful, prayerful manner.

Tomorrow will be Day 2. The focus will be time management, making intentional decisions about how to spend the minutes and hours God grants us, rather than floating aimlessly through the day. I'm guessing the task will be a challenge that won't be accomplished on the first try, particularly with my A.D.D. personality.

Heavenly Father, 

You have given us the gift of time. I struggle to make good use of that gift each day. Help me this Advent Season to more fully appreciate the minutes and hours you have given me, and to use my time to better serve you.

Your Son, Jesus Christ, came as a little child to be the Savior of the World. Help me to also see Jesus in the children you have entrusted to my care. 

Amen.

Once Upon a Time, A Writer Tried Again and Again, but Got Distracted

Today is November 1, 2014. For some, it's the day after Halloween--a time for sugar overload. For others, it's All Saints' Day--a time to remember the saints who've gone to their eternal reward. They lived their lives in service of the Lord, and they get to spend eternity with Him. Tomorrow, November 2, is All Souls' Day. On this day, we remember all the faithful who have died (especially in the past 12 months), but who may be spending some time in Purgatory to be made pure before entering into the presence of the Almighty God.  Finally, on a heavier, lighter note, it's the beginning of another National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). Heavier and lighter? Yes. "Winning" NaNoWriMo has been a goal of mine for about 7 years now. However, I've never stuck with it for the whole month of November (heavy: I failed). I've never "won" the challenge of writing 50,000 words over the course of the month of November. NaNoWriMo should be fun (light: do something for the fun and challenge of it), and if I don't win, it's not of much consequence to my time in eternity. What will this November hold for me?

During my prayers this morning, I reflected on the past month. October was a little bumpy for me this year. Car and appliance repairs, school work not getting done, a mini bout with depression, three family medical emergencies in one week (none life-threatening), and other little stressors. I'm happy for a new month, even though November generally brings its own yuck with the time change and sundown coming before the evening rush hour (sunset tomorrow is 4:42, and it's going to get earlier and earlier until the Winter Solstice). For anyone who suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder, this month can be challenging, to put it gently.

November. Why should November be any different than October was? Why would this November be any different. I want to tell you, but if I give my idea today and don't follow through, I'll feel the fool, again. And it's likely that I won't follow through. But, some things are different this year. I didn't decide whether or not to compete in NaNoWriMo this year until this morning. Other years, I planned on it throughout October. And I'm not going to follow the NaNoWriMo advice to tell everyone I'm writing a novel until I make it through November 12. Okay, so I just lied there since I told anyone who's reading this post. But I'm not telling you the genre or the focus. Let's just say, I think it could be fun, and it might just help with my A.D.D., A.D.H.D, or whatever it is.

The first reading this morning for All Saints' Day was from Revelation. The selection concluded with these words:

Then one of the elders spoke up and said to me, "Who are these wearing white robes, and where did they come from? I said to him, "My lord, you are the one who knows." He said to me, "These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb." Rev: 7:13-14

The words "survived the time of great distress" spoke to my heart. Like Martha, "I'm worried and anxious over many things." I want to fix things. I want to help people. However, some days, I can't even clear out the junk e-mail from my inbox. I read lots of self-help books and blogs. I know what I need to do, but for some reason I just cannot execute those tasks. Why? I have blamed A.D.D., and clearly I'm not alone because the blog post where I questioned my own self-diagnosis gets the most hits on this blog. Every new week, month, season, year, I get excited and hopeful for a significant change where I follow the health, finance, and career advice that will make me successful. Alas, my enthusiasm dims by Thursday, by the 8th of the month, or by February. I realize that if I am to do anything worthwhile, I must wash my robes in the Blood of the Lamb. Christ must be at the center.

Heavenly Father,

Help me to do your will this day. Lead me, through your Holy Word, and help me follow your plan for me. Keep me safe from all distress. Guide me so that I may help guide those entrusted to my care. 

Amen.

Minimalist, I Am Not

Today, June 30, was the final day of my participation in the Minimalism Game with a group of friends. I have posted some of my daily decluttering tallies in this blog: here, here, here...and here. I have pondered whether decluttering would help my un-diagnosed ADD and whether the accountability in the game would help me maintain focus. The answer to both of those questions is "sort of." 

Pride is a useful tool. When other members of the group would send the group emails with their daily tallies, I couldn't let them beat me. I'm not always a "winner," but I am fairly competitive. My pride motivated me to keep purging junk, even though I wasn't highly motivated personally to get rid of things on certain days. I knew that the other members of the group would notice if I didn't send a message with my purge list, so the accountability kept me going to the end of the game.

Has the decluttering helped my focus? I would say, not yet. We have purged a lot, but several areas need more concentrated purging, then organizing before I can be in the spaces without being regularly distracted. Most importantly, the office needs an overhaul. However, some of the spaces that were particularly distracting to me are much better today than they were May 31.

Several members of my household have contributed to the item count. My daughter cleaned out the clothes that she doesn't wear and the socks with holes for a 20-something count. Because she cleaned out her dresser, I was able to repair a broken drawer, and her "clothes pile" is no longer on top of the dresser. The clothes are mostly put away, and I can now stand in her doorway and talk to her without feeling anxious at the sight of the clutter.

The boys helped my husband with a garage clean-up that tallied to the full count for days 28 and 29. When I drove the van into the garage today, I noticed that it felt much roomier. Organizing and painting the garage is the family project for the rest of this summer, so the Minimalism Game was a great first step to getting that project underway.

I was struggling today to finish the game. I had a bit of a headache and thought about not bothering with the final day. The pride thing started gnawing at me around 9 p.m.  I was sitting here wondering what I would do for the final 27 since I had the first 3 accounted for.  I kept looking at the shelves in the office closet, knowing that I probably could have gotten quite a few days’ worth out of there, but I hesitated to tackle the space for some reason. A few moments ago, my gaze fell upon a green basket. I remembered that I used to store cassette tapes in that basket. On top of the cassettes were some small photo albums. My daughter and I looked at baby pictures of her and the two older boys for a few minutes, then I dug in to find the cassettes!

Day 30

1.  Pair of my husband's old running shoes

2. A pair of holey, not holy, underwear.

3. Dried out glue stick

4-30! Mix tapes and other 1980s cassettes.

Done!!

For July, I will be working on the garage project and my Camp NaNoWriMo novel, but I may try a 31-day Minimalism Challenge for August with a special focus on the office and kitchen. Then, I'll let you know if my focus improves.

I have learned from this game that I am not a minimalist, and I probably never will be. However, we have recognized as a family that we have held on to a lot of junk that we really do not need. Clearing out the junk makes it easier to find what we do need and to use the useful things we'd forgotten because they were hidden in the clutter. 

Maintaining Focus through a Game

With all the things I'm getting rid of, I would expect the house to feel empty! Of course, lots of the items are small enough to fit in my hand, so the impact is gradual. Even so, this minimalism game is motivating me to keep purging junk, which will make it easier to find the things we need and keep the house clean.

My husband and I stood together in the garage the other day and considered some purging that we'll be doing in there this weekend. Days 21 and 22 should be a cinch since I'll have a team working with me! My husband will make sure that all of the children pitch in for the garage project!. Once the garage is purged and reorganized (and the ceiling and one wall painted), it will make getting in and out of the vehicle more comfortable and will make the tools, bicycles, and lawn mower much more accessible. In addition, it will look nicer and will be a welcoming place to drive into when I come home.

So, here are my decluttering accounts for days 13 to 17.

Day 13:

(1-12, trash!)

1-10 Pile of threadbare, holey cloth napkins that actually were in the washing machine. As I was moving things to the dryer, I thought, "Why are we keeping these? I have new ones with no holes!"

11-12 Facecloths that were threadbare, too.

13 A skort that I never wear (going to a friend)

Day 14:

(1-9 are in a bag to donate to Goodwill)

1-3 Skirts

4-6 Dresses

7-9 Sweaters

10-14 plant trays (3) and a bunch of empty "six packs" from plants, recycled

Day 15

1-3. Two water bottles and a belt for running--given to a friend who will use them!

4. Work ID from former employer, 2005

5. Refrigerator magnet

6. "Hallmark" book (basically an extended greeting card) 

7-9. Cubic zirconia necklace and two pairs of earrings 

10-15. Other costume jewelry (pin and several pairs of earrings).

Day 16

1-16 Medicine cabinet and linen closet purge of "lotions and potions"!  Samples of hair product that I'll never use, old nail polish (some that my daughter contributed to the cause!), multiple packets of mineral oil and a packet of oatmeal bath stuff from the 1990s.

Day 17

1-3 rags that have seen better days

4-7 several of my youngest son's 3rd grade workbooks

8-12 more HBA stuff

13 Dried up Mod Podge

14-17 T-shirts of mine that were so old, floppy, and ugly that I wouldn't even wear them to garden or paint.

Almost everything I've purged the last few days is trash that I've been ignoring. The game is making it so much easier to toss, toss, toss! 

As I write, I'm noticing that my office holds many items that we never use and that my tiny desk is a big mess. The office will be my decluttering focus for the next few days. Purging and then organizing this space is essential if I'm going to conquer my distracted nature when I am working!

In addition to being a homeschooling mom and a blogger, I teach a college composition class and am a freelance writer. I've written articles mostly for Catholic websites, but my personal goal is to write a novel. In fact, I hope to write many novels, but the trick is to finally finish one! I have started and quit NaNoWriMo several times (November is always too busy for me), so I'm hoping to finally write my first complete novel during Camp NaNoWriMo this July. 

Who knows, the Minimalism Game may just inspire the focus I need to stick with the writing project for the entire month!

The Catholic Baby Name Book by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur

Today, I wish to direct you to a post on the Spiritual Woman blog by my dear friend Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur: The Catholic Baby Name Book is Now Available for Pre-Order.  If you know expectant parents, Confirmation candidates/confirmation teachers, or authors looking for character names, this book would be great for any and all of the above!

Searching for My Narrative Voice

Happy All Saints Day!

This morning, on the way to Mass, I thought of a story I started in graduate school for a fiction-writing class.  The memory inspired me to revisit the characters in the novel I will write this month.  I found the draft dated October 25, 1995.  The folder contained numerous copies with comments from my classmates.  One particular draft had a sea of blue ink--comments, corrections, critiques--from one of my peers.  The final remark, Reread and think about what you want to do with this as a storyteller.  Then write and explore!--AZ

My biggest hangup with writing fiction has been my resistance to the role of storyteller.  I am too nice to my characters. I protect them.  I help them avoid danger. I help them make good choices.  Then, I run out of story before it begins.

Thank you, AZ, for telling me 18 years ago to think about how I want to approach the story.  I took your advice and reread.  I see an opportunity here!  And once it's written, I may seek you out and send you a manuscript that you can cover in blue ink.

NaNoWriMo Starts Thursday, November 1, 2012

Have you ever considered writing a novel?  Do the dark days of November seem like to perfect time to sip tea and write 1,667 words a day to meet a 50,000-word goal by November 30?  Are you looking for a new goal or project in the midst of your already busy life that will elicit the remarks, "You're nuts!" "I don't know how you do it!" or "You're writing a novel.  Wow, I've always wanted to write a novel!"? If so, you should check out the National Novel Writing Month website at NaNoWriMo.org.

I started a novel in 2010, but grading the research paper assignment I had my college students working on got in my way.  Last year, my excuse was a 5-day power outage, and the research paper.

This year, the research paper is due earlier in the month!  The worst of the Superstorm Sandy missed our area, so power is normal.  I haven't settled on a genre or written any character sketches this time.  However, I am hopeful that 2012 will be the year I write my first novel!

I proudly watched my daughter write every day and "win" as she completed her word-count goal in 2010 and 2011 (co-authored with her best friend). At age 13, she is giddy for November 1 and the chance to write her third novel.

If you have been reading my blog posts, you may be snickering a bit and thinking this is part of my A.D.O.S. and I won't finish.  You may be correct in that assumption, but I'm telling you about my goal as self-motivation to stick with it.

If you decide to write a novel in November, I wish you love and sweet success, to the tune of 50,000 words.