I am a horrible "finisher" of things.
I have valentines in a box on top of the fridge that the kids made for family this year - but never got mailed (I consider myself one step ahead for next year).
I have books that I started but never finished - Eve and the Choice Made In Eden, A Candle in the Darkness, Fablehaven (which I picked up for another go on Thursday and finished it FRIDAY - YES IT'S THAT AWESOME).
And I have this:
This is the quilt I started to make for Rachel when we MOVED TO VERNAL...2 YEARS AGO. (and yes that's Rachel - younger than Ben is now in that picture)
I got a second wind this last Christmas and decided that I would take some of the finished squares and make a baby blanket for the baby she got from Santa hoping it would inspire me to finish HERS.
But during the Christmas clean-up the material went back into the box from whence it came and hasn't returned.
I don't know why I do this. It feels so satisfying to FINISH something. I FINISHED a mission to Africa, I FINISHED my degree in nursing, I FINISHED bearing 2 children (I know I know - I didn't really have a choice on that one but believe me I'm proud I did it just the same), I FINISHED a garden last year, and once in my life I know I have FINISHED the laundry (though I won't tell you how long ago that was). I know what it feels like to finish. But so often I DON'T finish. I get bored with a project and a new one catches my eye. I have trouble seeing the finish line and give up. I get distracted by my children or husband or calling or job or house...the list goes on and on.
But not this year.
This year I will be a finisher. I will work on unfinished projects to feel the satisfaction of completion. I will not sign up for more than I can handle. I will think every craft at the Relief Society enrichment night is cute and be content only signing up for one of them.
Then I started thinking about how my parents raised me. All through school they encouraged me to sign up for the HARD classes. "But I know I can get an A in that one!" I would protest. Then my mom, in her wisdom, would tell me that it's not about the grade, it's about the experience. "I know you could get an A in that one," she'd say, "but THIS one would put you to the test and help you to grow and see what you are really capable of." Having said this you should know that NEVER IN MY LIFE have I EVER been a straight "A" student. "B's" were my lot in life with an occasional "A" or "C" to round out the 3.0 average. And to tell you the truth, I can't even REMEMBER my grades now. BUT - I REMEMBER MY EDUCATION. I remember going on field days and doing science projects and other big scale things because of the hard classes I decided to take in Jr. High. I remember getting whipped in chemistry and math my first year of college (so bad I had to take those again) but learning some valuable life lessons and meeting some important people and making some vital major changes in the process.
What I'm saying is, maybe that's why I have a hard time finishing things. I take on more than I can handle - so that I will never stop growing. If there is always a new height to be reached then I will always be able to keep moving forward. But maybe the standard get's set too high realistically - it's easy to get discouraged and give up when you feel you can't accomplish anything you set out to do. However, if the final standard is PERFECTION then that bar needs to always be on the rise. Not all at once. Just a step at a time. That's the trick, always raising the bar, but just a little at a time. Baby Steps.
I have valentines in a box on top of the fridge that the kids made for family this year - but never got mailed (I consider myself one step ahead for next year).
I have books that I started but never finished - Eve and the Choice Made In Eden, A Candle in the Darkness, Fablehaven (which I picked up for another go on Thursday and finished it FRIDAY - YES IT'S THAT AWESOME).
And I have this:
This is the quilt I started to make for Rachel when we MOVED TO VERNAL...2 YEARS AGO. (and yes that's Rachel - younger than Ben is now in that picture)
I got a second wind this last Christmas and decided that I would take some of the finished squares and make a baby blanket for the baby she got from Santa hoping it would inspire me to finish HERS.
But during the Christmas clean-up the material went back into the box from whence it came and hasn't returned.
I don't know why I do this. It feels so satisfying to FINISH something. I FINISHED a mission to Africa, I FINISHED my degree in nursing, I FINISHED bearing 2 children (I know I know - I didn't really have a choice on that one but believe me I'm proud I did it just the same), I FINISHED a garden last year, and once in my life I know I have FINISHED the laundry (though I won't tell you how long ago that was). I know what it feels like to finish. But so often I DON'T finish. I get bored with a project and a new one catches my eye. I have trouble seeing the finish line and give up. I get distracted by my children or husband or calling or job or house...the list goes on and on.
But not this year.
This year I will be a finisher. I will work on unfinished projects to feel the satisfaction of completion. I will not sign up for more than I can handle. I will think every craft at the Relief Society enrichment night is cute and be content only signing up for one of them.
Then I started thinking about how my parents raised me. All through school they encouraged me to sign up for the HARD classes. "But I know I can get an A in that one!" I would protest. Then my mom, in her wisdom, would tell me that it's not about the grade, it's about the experience. "I know you could get an A in that one," she'd say, "but THIS one would put you to the test and help you to grow and see what you are really capable of." Having said this you should know that NEVER IN MY LIFE have I EVER been a straight "A" student. "B's" were my lot in life with an occasional "A" or "C" to round out the 3.0 average. And to tell you the truth, I can't even REMEMBER my grades now. BUT - I REMEMBER MY EDUCATION. I remember going on field days and doing science projects and other big scale things because of the hard classes I decided to take in Jr. High. I remember getting whipped in chemistry and math my first year of college (so bad I had to take those again) but learning some valuable life lessons and meeting some important people and making some vital major changes in the process.
What I'm saying is, maybe that's why I have a hard time finishing things. I take on more than I can handle - so that I will never stop growing. If there is always a new height to be reached then I will always be able to keep moving forward. But maybe the standard get's set too high realistically - it's easy to get discouraged and give up when you feel you can't accomplish anything you set out to do. However, if the final standard is PERFECTION then that bar needs to always be on the rise. Not all at once. Just a step at a time. That's the trick, always raising the bar, but just a little at a time. Baby Steps.
Take a lesson from Bob.
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