Be Done

"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense" -Ralph Waldo Emerson


How hard is that for you to do?  I know for myself it's almost impossible.  I frequently beat myself up ad nauseam for things I've done, said, or missed.  Letting go has never been high on my list of personal skills.


But aren't I just robbing myself?  I'm stealing precious moments from the present by lingering over mistakes from the past.  And I'm talking about things as trivial as forgetting the load in the dryer before I went to bed.  What joys am I missing today because I'm still living in the land of "I should have"?


I don't expect perfection from my friends or my children.  Why do I then criticize myself for failing to achieve it?  Is it a gender issue?  Or is it generational, that I was raised with the expectation that I should be the perfect wife, mother, career woman, friend?  Could it be that I placed my own unattainable standards on myself?


My nest is empty now.  My children are grown and gone.  I can't go back and fix what I think I did wrong.  You know what?  They turned out to be fantastic kids in spite of whatever mistakes I made!  


Is my home always Martha Stewart perfect?  Oh hell, no!!!  But I've made the decision that time spent with friends is infinitely more valuable to me than polishing and primping.  That is something I won't change.


So a new resolution for a new phase of life.  I'm not perfect.  No one, except for me, expects me to be.  I resolve to get a grip, let the past go, and enjoy this moment.  Time is getting short.  I can't afford to do otherwise.


Love,
Jerri