Just another manic Monday

"a time to build up"

Ecclesiastes 3:3

I got a little gift today.  An unexpected largesse from the clock.  Or my calendar.  Or something...

It went like this...

My Mondays are wonderfully orchestrated.  Mondays and Tuesdays are the days when it's most important to me that everything go smoothly.  I'm a fairly wing-it kinda person in general, but Tuesdays are my busy day, so that has to go well.  And Mondays?  Well, they're Mondays.  I feel the week is off to a good start if I hit the ground running.  So I keep to a pretty good routine. 

The gift today was an extra couple of hours of time.  While I teach my Adorable and Amazing Boy every morning, it's a little different with my Attractive and Awesome Girl.  For her, I put together a week-long lesson plan, and then she works independently.  We do math together, whenever during the day she's ready, and she comes me to me if she needs help on something, but all the prep for her learning is done by me on Mondays. 

I figure out what sections or chapters need to be done in what subjects, and write it down in my book and hers.  Then I need to make photocopies or print out any necessary worksheets.  Sometimes I need to type them out, if I'm diverging from what the curriculum is doing.  Other times I need to type up tests for her, or print out already prepared tests.  The whole thing can take 90 minutes or even two hours. 

But I didn't need to do that today.  She was sick a couple of days last week, so she's not ready for me to dump a new week's worth of work on her.  She was working hard today, to get caught up, so maybe tomorrow she'll feel ready for me to assign her work for the rest of the week. 

Naturally, I took advantage of that extra time today.  But not by tackling any project like cleaning out a drawer or organizing a closet.  No, I did some of the stuff that's going to need to be done on Tuesday.  Or Wednesday.  Or ~ well, you get the point.  I got ahead, is what I'm sayin'.

The same thing happened last week, actually.  My Monday needed to go a little different than usual, and I found myself with extra time.  So I got ahead.  And by Friday, boy, was I glad I had, 'cause the rest of my week was not on my side.  But everything went smoothly, even though unexpected things happened, and that's because I had built up a bit of a lead. 

That feeling, of being glad I had over-prepared myself, reminded me of something my boy said several months ago.  He was talking about the Dodgers, and the fact that they had just lost four games in a row.  But this was in a season where they had achieved a record-breaking, nearly month-long streak of wins.  And though my son was disappointed they had lost four in a row, he said, "Well, that's why we built up a lead; to prepare for something like this."

I was glad he had realized that.  Things are not always going to be good.  But you can always be ready.  You can have what you need, if you're thinking ahead.  Doing everything possible, while things are in your control.   Money set aside for a rainy day; time or materials organized in case of an unexpected bump in your schedule, and yes, even your faith strengthened and solidified for the trial that's heading your way. 

Appreciate and take advantage of what you have now, for when you might not have it.  Work hard now, and you'll appreciate the dividends later.

Ask Him now, for what you'll need then.  And then trust Him to provide. 

~ "Go to the ant...

    Consider her ways and be wise...

She provides her supplies in the summer,

And gathers her food in the harvest" ~

Proverbs 6:6,8

~