When you have a scatter-prone brain, and a big old wad of life to chew, things can get a bit disorganized. The parade of neighbors who walk through our back gate, the only passageway between two neighborhoods, would recognize this as a Connors truth. Dave, by nature, is much more organized. He just can’t keep up with me and my need to hang onto stuff cuz someone might need it. To be quite honest, we are those people folks call when they need a random this-or-that for an upcoming event, and I am always happy to oblige. It only really becomes a serious problem when I can’t find that thing I saved for “such a time as this” and I end up beating myself for having no order whatsoever. We live in a jigsaw puzzle box. At least its colorful.
My personal business motto is IDEAS R US. My head is on idea overdrive. They rattle around in my brain like ping pong balls falling on Captain Kangaroo. It’s been this way since I was old enough to think. I should probably clarify… CREATIVE IDEAS R US.
Really useful things like balancing budgets and sorting junk drawers are not necessarily in my skill set. Which brings me to my Lazy Susan.
Last summer we purchased a large round table for our dining area. It seats ten for our Sunday dinners. It came with a dandy Lazy Susan to set on top. Thick glass with good bearings that make it spin smoothly and with ease, like an eternal Merry Go Round. Without it the table is too large to pass anything across to the persons opposite. Last Sunday, when my nephew’s family was here from St George and able to join the masses for Sunday dinner, we taped extra wide paper on top of it, manned the kids with colored Sharpie markers, and made a giant Spirograph.
Monday I placed 150 names, printed on pieces of cardstock, on top of the glass. I had been trying, for weeks, to organize on my computer, and on a legal pad, and then finally Ideas R Us popped out the prompt to use the Lazy Susan.
Here’s what Monday looked like.
Now, after roughly 50 hours, and I am not kidding about that, here’s what it looks like.
Such is the task of organizing people. Trust me, it’s easier to dig through the garage. Not as much risk involved.
I love my calling as Relief Society President. I honestly do. I feel like my heart has grown three sizes too large, or whatever it did in the Grinch (not that I’m a grinch, though after our four hour presidency meeting today my counselors might say otherwise). Pretty much any Relief Society of Elders Quorum President will tell you that keeping ministering assignments organized, functional and flowing is the bane of their existence. One person moves and the whole jigsaw puzzle starts to fall apart. Because of the pandemic, when I was first given charge of this responsibility, I felt impressed to create ministering groups rather than companions. These teams of sisters watch over each other. There has been greater ownership and more equal-based friendships formed under this format. More of our membership is accounted for, and the connective thread between the sisters and the bishop is stronger under this format. But we needed to make come changes. For instance, because we have a senior mobile home park in our church community, we had assigned couples to minister together. A few weeks ago we had an 83 year old and a 78 year old lying on the ground under the trailer of one of our sisters attempting to fix a pipe. The holy spirit of all things safe whispered “Isn’t there a younger demographic that could do this kind of ministering?” And so the shifting started and I ended up with this mess on my Lazy Susan. (By the way, who came up with the term Lazy Susan and why didn’t they call it The Great Facilitator instead?)
The visual of what I could do on my table, with a gentle spin allowing potential changes, was perfect, though we haven’t had dinner at the table all week.
Finally, with the ultimate help of my blessed friends Tasha, Cheryl and Bonnie who man this ship with me, we have a collection of remarkable women who, if they give it a chance, will have their lives changed for good and will look back years from now and wonder what they might have missed had they not moved forward with faith.
Here’s what I have discovered in the last three years I have served in this calling:
1. I can do hard things
2. If I will keep a prayer simmering in my heart and brain, the Holy Ghost pretty much always comes through
3. I can achieve less by doing everything myself and more when I let go and allow people to step in and either help or take charge
4. Everyone is majestic and everyone struggles
5. Good people make mistakes
6. God knows more than I do (he keeps teaching me this)
Now is that sweet spot where no-one knows about these changes so no one is panicked and calling me.
Breathe in – Breathe out.
Also, I need this book, except I can't stay focused long enough to finish books :-)
The second law at work
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