Finding a New Rhythm

Going back to work meant life would change, not only for me but for my family and friends.  I would no longer be available for that Monday fast walk with a friend and our dogs to catch up on life.  The phone calls from my college aged kids might not get answered for a few hours and the text from my husband might go unread until I was able to respond. I would no longer be totally free to set my own schedule. How would that feel?

As an employee, involved community member and as a mother I have multi tasked for years, sometimes complicating that by putting others needs before my own while yet at other times I have been able to find that precious “me time.” I ran two marathons while raising children. How hard would it be to add a 40 hour work week to the mix with nearly grown up kids and aging parents? There’s no denying it, some days it’s not as easy as others.  Ensuring great output at work while organizing a furnace cleaning, dentist appointment and a hair stylist who doesn’t work Saturdays makes for interesting scheduling. How would I manage it all?

A few year’s ago I started using Google calendar -now its color coded entries help me manage my schedule, my family’s schedule, other meetings and now my parent’s schedule. Snap chat, Instagram and Facebook help me keep up with family and friends when I don’t have time to make a phone call or stop by to say hello.

Even with all that organization there are times when I think I won’t be able to get everything done in a day or from time to time make it through the day.  That’s when friends and fellow returners come in -it’s in the conversations we share about our work, families and aspirations that helps to lighten our load and most times we find something to laugh about.

The key has been to give myself permission to not do it all but still work to look after myself and my to do list – we are all finding the new rhythm to our day to day.