NO you weren't! Still sitting there! I did not move it, so it remains unmoved. And will remain unmoved until I move it out to the camper and put it away. I know, it is very time consuming as the camper is sooo far away from the back door. You have to cross our whole back yard to get to it.
If you were "gonna do it" please just skip the gonna part and just do it and save me the time and hassle. I have plenty to do all day long. Like make butternut squash soup for dinner.
And for a week now, I have been "gonna" make butternut squash soup. Just seems that there is not enough time, or I don't think about it early enough in the day to get it going (it is a slow cooker recipe), or both my knives are in the dishwasher, or I absolutely HATE cutting up squash. Or there is a family emergency. Or my socks are itchy.
I get it. There are things all of us procrastinate about. For some it is putting together that power point presentation and for others it is tackling the catch all closet where good coats and scarves and extra school supplies go to die. It is the good intentions that we have that go to the wayside. Sometimes we dread the task and sometimes life just gets in the way. We live in a busy, over scheduled world where we have to make dates with our friends just to get together and catch up. But please, don't tell me you were "gonna do that." If you were, you would have done it. When you say "I was gonna do that" in response to my stating something I have done, what you are telling me that the task was not worth your time or effort and too far beneath you to do, so I, the good minion, got to do it. It is demeaning to see myself as a minion (even if I may be one) and it makes me angry to have my efforts brushed aside so lightly. Taking the laundry down the stairs may not sound like such a great task unless you are having a bad balance day and both feet are not working together to transport you about. Typing up a set of notes from the latest meeting is no great shakes if you don't already have a full workload for the day, go home to a kid with a mountain of homework and dishes piled in the sink and no clue what to make for dinner. Getting the car washed only takes five minutes, that is, after driving on a business trip for six hours in heavy traffic.
Lets all stop lying to ourselves and others and admit that we cannot do it all, and sometimes never even thought about doing what was mentioned. Instead of brushing off the task accomplished with "I was gonna do that," lets stop and say thank you. I am so glad you took the time to do that. I am sorry, I should have made time to take care of that. Suddenly the menial becomes more fulfilling. And the taskmasters feel uplifted. Just a simple rephrasing opens us up to gratitude and all of its wonderful benefits. When we are grateful, we fell loved and taken care of. We feel inspired. There is no ill will in gratitude.
So the next time a friend tells you about something he or she did, no matter how trivial, stop yourself from uttering the phrase "I was gonna do that" and compliment them instead. Thank them for their efforts. Apologize if it is something you should have taken care of and show them that you appreciate them. Mention that they have inspired you and you are going to try and make time to tackle that project in your own home.
Then take the next step, plan on doing. Take action. Take control. Have you been meaning to get in touch with that friend? Email or text them two dates and times and ask which would work to get together. It is okay to put time limits on the dates. If they are your friend, they already know you are busy. Want to tackle that closet? Put it on the calendar. Like to finish those notes, ask someone to take the laundry downstairs and bring you a cup of tea and turn on the computer. Sure, sometimes life will still get in the way, but when you live with intention, somehow you manage to do the things that are important. Even the little things.
Incidentally, my house smells of the wonderful aroma of butternut squash soup cooking.
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