Scheduling Mnemoncis

There are so many blessings that Trent’s challenge of autism has given our family, but one that maybe easy to overlook is his need for routine.  He seems to have less trauma when we can have some semblance of order in our lives.  He likes a schedule. It has forced me to plan and have back-up plans.  But in a way it has simplified my life.  So, I can balance everything to care for him, I have learned a few things that make my own life easier to manage.

So, applying a benefit of autism to my homemaking tasks, I schedule routine tasks.  Since I need EASY in my life, I use mnemonics, automatic scheduling features of ical, and some silly word association techniques.

Perhaps some of these ideas can help you.  I doubt any of mine will work directly for you, but it might get your own mind thinking of how to tame your own time management grizzlies.

1)    Fix it day.  Since a stitch in time saves nine, on the 9^th of each month I have fix it day. My family knows to stack up shirts with loose buttons, shorts with tears, alterations, etc. for the 9^th of each month.  I then set up the sewing machine, grab different colored threads and have at it.  Since for me so much of mending time is just the set-up, I only do it once a month.  I also heat up the glue gun for those types of repairs. Then after the stack is finished, the equipment goes back up and out of sight until the 9^th of the next month.

2)    My plants were suffering until I set the 17^th of each month as fertilizer day. Here’s how my quirky brain came up with that.  I fertilized one year on St. Pat’s day – theme of green – so it seemed to fit.  My fertilizing is an attempt to “green-up” my plants, so this way I don’t wait too long like 6 weeks or over fertilize after only 3.

3)    This next one definitely only works for me, but it might help you get some ideas for ways to schedule repeat tasks in your own life.  My skin is weird, but after half a century with it, I have found that if I alternate between two different soaps every other day, my skin will tend to cooperate better.  One bar is white, so I use it on odd days.  One bar is tan and I use it on even days. Before I decided on this (and I refused to set up a clipboard next to my shower) I couldn’t remember which one I had used last. The mental calisthenics to get this scheme was this:  albinism in most spiciest is considered an oddity (all white soap = odd days), and I want an even tan on my legs (hence, tan soap on even days).  Ah, one less thing to have to keep track of and waste brain time on. Again, I don’t think there is another human on the planet that could use that scheme, but it might get your brain to think of something with meaning in your life that you could regulate to a regiment – so you can think of sunshine, puppies, and flowers instead of …

4)    Thanksgiving Day falls on a Thursday every year. That helps me organize one of my tasks in a given week and Thursday is my day to write thank you notes.

Rather then continue with my list of automatic reminders of repeated chores, I want to relate to you.  I know that we all have so many responsibilities that we are juggling, that if we can just let some of those squishy balls fly through the air on their own without our having to add them to our to do list, or log in our journal, we would be free to be more creative with the task that are one-timers.

Some task repeat daily, some weekly, a considerable amount monthly, and a few yearly, but when I can relegate the planning to “inked” in subroutine in my brain, I’m less likely to forget the task, more likely to enjoy the task because my time seems more productive (all the sewing at once while the equipment is out), and my family, like my plants, seem to understand the flow and thrive.

Of course, there are emergencies, when all bets are off and I have to sew on a button RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE, or my thank you note writing has to wait for a week because of a doctor’s appointment, but for the most part, scheduling makes my life easier – especially the ones that are “on the tip of my brain” that I don’t even have to write them down.

Now, go forth and conquer that pile of lonely-only socks on the first of each month.

Now if only weeding could be scheduled . . .

365 People

Recently I celebrated 50 amazing years here on Earth. Well before the day, I told Bethany (dd) and Alan (dh) not to plan a usual Happy 50th Bash. Over the years I have written dozens of “What you’ve meant to me” letters as spouses or children collected mementos to give to the mid-century “birthdayee.” I have had friends whose husband flew in friends from all over the country to party when his wife turned 50. I have known wife’s who rented halls and had grand parties for the big event. Before my loved ones could even contemplate such a “This is Your Life” extravaganza, I asked them not to. I had a different idea of how I wanted to celebrate the Lord allowing me to live this long (and as many close calls as I’ve had, it is definitely an act of His Will).

You see, instead of learning how much I had blessed others (with their congratulatory notes, letters, emails, etc.) I realize that I am the one who has been blessed. So, I’m writing the letters to people who have impacted my life and blessed me. I’m averaging 30 a month for this year.

It has been wonderful as I remember the impact that others have had. Their love, care, and prompting have enriched my life.

Yes, many of those in my life, like Sunday school teachers, pastors, friends of my family, and mentors have died and I cannot write them, but when available, I’m letting their children know.

I, in no way, think those who do the “This is Your Life” bit for their family are wrong. What they do is wonderful and I know each time I’ve been able to participate that person well deserved the accolades.

It’s just that my life has been more blessed by others, than the other way around. Guilty as charged. I’m a receiver of thousands of prayers, goodwill, and acts of kindness. The balance definitely tips in favor of others, while my deeds are a thin stack compared.

So, I’m on a mission to track down people, some I haven’t seen for forty years or more and some I just lost touch with. But the memories are grand and heart-warming and feel like God is blessing me all over again.

I mention it hear, because I’ve found that this attitude of gratitude affects every aspect of my day. My thoughts are filled with mental thank you notes, which I transpose into prayers. Instead of writing the “obituary” note to someone when their loved one dies, I’m trying to write them now. It has had a marvelous impact as to positive thoughts and upping my outlook.

I know the news is dreadful and filled with precursors of a soon-coming apocalypse (be it via over-taxation, globalism, lose of privacy, anti-nationalism, persecution, intrusion, monetary collapse, and spiritual decline) and it is too easy to get discouraged.

There was a time, one TV in the house was tuned to Fox News all day. As I would work around the house, I could walk by and catch any news or TiVo back to anything I might have missed. But lately, and no reflection on Fox, but I find the news so discouraging that I turned the TV off. And turned the music up, the scripture reading louder, or even muted everything so I could instead dwell on what is right about God’s plan with what is going on in the world today. Because as much as it appears to be spinning out of control and so many people have gone crazy and lost their moral foothold – There’s a deeper magic still – God is handling it all and steering it towards His plot line, not our’s, not satan’s, but His.

Rejoice! Be Thankful! And write a thank you note today to someone who has blessed you – even if it only mental and is cc’d as a prayer.