Shattered Visions: when plans fall apart
Sometimes life doesn’t go the way you plan. When that happens, how do you react? Many times in my life, I’ve had a perfect picture of how my day was going to go, and then something derailed those carefully crafted plans. When that happens, I get in a mood, and it’s usually not a great one, a mix of irritation and resentment.
I’m sure that happens to you too.
In those moments, when I’m having a hard time adjusting to a change in plans, I find myself asking why. Why can’t things just go the way I want them to go?
In the grand scheme of things, the following example isn’t a huge deal, but delivered at just the right moment, any event, big or small, can trigger a reaction inside. The other morning, I was “on’. I felt good. I had energy. And I was ready to cross off so many things on my to-do list. I got dressed early. I prepped the coffee machine. I had breakfast going before anyone else got up. I smiled at my seamless assembly line of sweet, sweet efficiency.
Then…other people in my house started waking up.
And they had their hearts set on a different kind of breakfast for the day. And they weren’t feeling as chipper as I was, so they didn’t want to get dressed and go like I did. They wanted to whine and press the buttons on the microwave that I’d already pressed. They wanted me to undo actions that I couldn’t. They wanted me to repeat actions that would slow me down. And I found myself getting irritated. Why couldn’t everyone just cooperate with my lovely plans?
Their sour moods were ruining everything.
Instead of flying through my tasks, I was forced to calmly explain why I wasn’t going to make a second breakfast. And why, for the thirtieth time, that we needed to be dressed early so we could make it to the bus stop because IF YOU MISS THE BUS, I AM NOT TAKING YOU TO SCHOOL. (Of course I would.) And then I explained how I couldn’t undo the heating that the microwave had done and had to console the 3-year-old who really wanted to push those buttons because she’d had her heart set on it.
The Quote
Failed plans should not be interpreted as a failed vision. Visions don't change, they are only refined. Plans rarely stay the same, and are scrapped or adjusted as needed. Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible with your plan.
John C. Maxwell
Don’t major in minors.
All of those things are small, but they changed my plans. I flopped down on the couch and huffed. And then I took in my surroundings. I was sitting on my comfy couch with a hot cup of coffee while Christmas lights danced all around me. And…it was nice. It was probably just what I needed.
Sometimes when things aren’t going as we want them to, it’s because we need something else. The devastation we face today just might be the path to something amazing in the future.
Medical Moment:
Stress causes disease.
Take a deep breath today, do the best you can, and stay healthier by letting things go.
That thing, that person, that task…isn’t worth sacrificing your health over.
God in my day:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Why I picked this topic:
As promised last week, below is the first 500 words of the novel I’m editing, along with a 75-word summary of the work. (Sorry. The sample of my work was only available to my newsletter members. Sign up here, so you don’t miss extras like this. And get my fresh posts directly in your inbox weekly.)
The topic of change is essentially the premise of THE FALSE FLAT. This book follows a woman who has plans and ideas for a future she thinks she wants, and she’s unhappy when life doesn’t go according to that plan. But if all the hard things hadn’t happened, she wouldn’t have ended up where she needed to be.
Whether you’re reading this on Monday or later in the week, I hope you try to “roll with the punches” because you never know when that punch is going to knock you right where you need to be, and maybe you just don’t know it yet.
Sometimes shattered visions make a beautiful mosaic.
Much glitter,
Melissa
