A Place to Start

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by a bad situation?

Today I went outside and felt utterly overwhelmed by my yard. It’s a mess.

We have a small yard in a mediocre neighbourhood and all I see right now are weeds and mounds of dirt and random objects and stairs that are falling apart.

Where do you begin when absolutely everything needs doing?  It makes us want to give up.  Maybe we should just jump ship and find a house with a yard that’s move-in ready. Or just forget about having a backyard and never step foot out there again.

Today I stood staring at it for a good five minutes. I think my husband has stared at it for a lot longer than that.

Then I saw the light. Literally.

The morning sun, shining from the southeast, lit up a northwestern section of the yard. All of a sudden I could see that bright corner filled with potted veggies and herbs. I looked around and saw a piece of unused trellis on the other side of the yard. I pulled it into the light. “Hmm, that will make a good backdrop for vines to climb on.”

A light turned on inside of me, too. Here I found hope, a place to start. Later in the day I put my son on a blanket beside me and started to weed that patch, arrange a rock border, and fill planters with dirt. It actually came together quickly!

They say gardening is good for the soul. Perhaps it’s because the work allows your busy mind a chance to reflect.

As I was working on that one small section it occurred to me that this yard is like my life. It can be a mess. It can be overwhelming to think about all the ways I could improve as a person.

Some times I wish I were more like this person or that one. The huge task of improving myself can make me feel like doing nothing and leaving everything the way it is.

Instead of constantly focusing on the big picture, maybe we can take one self-improvement step at a time.

Do you have big dreams and goals? A vision for the future that seems daunting? How could you break it down into smaller, more manageable goals? What’s one thing you could start to work on today or this week?

I know I need to eat fewer desserts. My husband and I love sweets, and so far have had little success trying to cut down.

So we’ve recently decided to try an experiment, a place to start.  We’re going to break the problem down into week-long sections. One week we will fast from sugary foods, the next we won’t. This way we won’t be outright depriving ourselves of the treats we love, and it should make it easier to get through the times when we’re going without.

It can be hard to actually follow through on the goals we set for ourselves.  It can be helpful to write them down and proclaim them to those around you, even anonymously. Go ahead, tell me your goal in the comments section!  Let’s all find a place to start.

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