A Time Of Confusion

SAT., SEPT. 2, 2000, 7:24 AM
FARM, STUDY

Yes, o son, I, your friendly Holy Spirit, do see this as a time of confusion in your life. You think… and I agree… that it shouldn’t be so. You are comfortably retired, both from university duties and from ongoing church responsibilities. (Yet you have misplaced the instruction sheet for this one responsibility you have accepted – ushering – and now… what do you do? For it is tomorrow morning that is your “first Sunday.” Oh, you’ll “muddle through,” but, of course, you should have seen this coming and done something about the loss.

You have a sense that your brain… or your mind… or both? are not functioning as they once did. There is some natural expectation that such will happen, with this time of being elderly, but you realize that there are some “counter-measures” you can take to avoid or reduce the confusion. You may need to return to “making lists” of events and responsibilities in the future. You have several calendars, and you could keep one on this desk with tasks written in on appropriate days and dates. I realize there is one such downstairs, but you could have one up here also. Just be sure it doesn’t get lost in the clutter of this desk.

You should agree that you have adapted better to retirement than you have to lessened responsibilities and tasks. You are somewhere between the two old gentlemen in that film that you used often, in your “teaching days.” One, in retirement, continued to put on his coat and tie, go to the office, and continue an active business or professional life, with continuing responsibilities. The other puttered in his garden, saying he did only what he wanted to do, at the time.

You are leaning toward this latter “plan” of retirement, but you continue to accept responsibilities. These would have been “a piece of cake” in days of yore, but are increasing your confusion now. You’ll have to accept that you must turn down some of these “offers,” and then keep some organized “track” of what you agree to do.

For many years you were an active, responsible person, and this “came easily.” Now you feel… and so do some others who “knew you then”… that you can still accomplish, can still assume roles and accomplish tasks. But you ae losing “the feel” for such, and hence you will fail to carry out what you agreed to. Of course, this means you’ll be asked less often… to never… and will be “classified” as “an old codger who can’t be trusted with responsibilities.

You still have a self-perception that is troubled by such judgments of self by others, and this means a time of uncomfortable confusion.

So, let’s set some priorities that are realistic for your time in life. Naturally I say that hearing Me and writing these Teachings should be your #1 priority. Related to this is Our quarterly Ruminations, and now is the time to write and produce the current one. (You thought you had scads of time, but you see it slipping away.).

I challenge you to clean this desk and the table to your left…and the piles on the floor. It will require some change, but now is a time to stop accumulating “stuff.” Truly consider Lenore’s dictum of “handle it once.”

Next, consider this warning of Mine: when you’re asked to take on a task, consider what you’re already doing and have taken on and refuse such offers. You’ll then be asked more infrequently, and you can then volunteer for something you want to do… and can accomplish.