The older you get the faster the years fly by! It just seems like yesterday that FlyLady started. For me time flies when you are having fun. I guess that is the message that I want to end this year with and start the new one.

Have you been having fun? That is all most of us want to do anyway! We just want to play! As children we couldn't wait to get outside and play after a hard day at school. Even though we were told that we could not go outside till our homework was done. We faked being done because we knew the daylight was fading. Our procrastination forced us to get our homework done on the bus or just before class.

The stress of procrastination makes life miserable. Putting things off till later is self punishment. We know eventually that our procrastination will catch up to us. I don't know why we do this to ourselves but if we can ever do what needs done before it is time, it frees us to have more fun.

When your home is messy you don't feel like you have time to pursue the fun things in life. You may think you do but that sink full of dirty dishes is still tugging at you and making you feel bad. Wouldn't it be more fun to play without unconsciously feeling guilty? We deny that our home bothers us. We are liberated women!

If I had not gotten my home in order I would not have recognized my purpose for living! I had always felt that something was missing in my life. My talents were many but as long as I lived in clutter and chaos they never came together to bless my life and the lives of others. I wanted more!

So a decade ago I got up on New Year's Day beating myself up. Why was I so disorganized? Why couldn't I keep our home clean? Why was I always late? The list goes on and on! As I made my perpetual New Year's resolution to "get organized" I vowed to figure out what my problem really was. I started looking deep into myself to a time when I had my act together.

The only time in my life that I had ever been able to keep house was when I was using Pam and Peggy's card file system. As I dug out my old card file; one of many I had built in two decades of striving for organization, I realized that once again I had faked my way so that I could play. I had built my card file but had never really internalized the habits that they were supposed to help me build. I had thought that the card file was the answer. It was not for me because I had skipped the most important part of Pam and Peggy's book.

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The crucial missing rule to my card file was that when one of the cards becomes a habit; you get to throw it away! I missed it because I was in a hurry to establish the box and had not read the book well. I just wanted to play once again. This realization changed my life. I had never established a habit!

Right then and there I made two New Year's resolutions. They were not huge goals like "getting organized"; they were babysteps! I picked one habit to practice, keeping my sink clean and shiny! That second resolution was all about my attitude toward me! Every time I beat myself up, I just gave up. I was tired of not living up to my unrealistic perfectionist expectations. It was time that I showed myself a little kindness.

As one established habit eventually evolved into my routines I was free! Free of my own self loathing, free of a messy home and free to have fun!

Are you ready to have some fun? Time FLYs when you do!

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