Today was the first real official day of summer. Not for me really as I had to get up and go to the other "job" that actually doesn't feel like a job at all. For me it feels like a relaxing vacation. I teach yoga. I get to hang out with people I really get along with and who are genuinely happy to be together. I left the house at 7am to get to the studio for my "practice." My practice is important enough for me to get out of the door early enough to have my time to do my thing. I feel like my own practice is the ticket in to teach "the practice." So, it's part of the work. I left a note for my four kids this morning. It read something like "Goodmorning Kids! Hope you are having a great morning so far! Cereal for breakfast - big surprise! And, before you touch any screen in the house this is what you must do first...clean room, make beds, go outside for at least 20 minutes, read for a half hour or so, pick a chore listed below, do it well and thoroughly. Number one rule: Be Kind."
I left my oldest in charge. She is a task master, organized and disciplinarian. She is petite and big doe eyed with long eyelashes. The give away that she is not the real mom is that she has braces with pink and green color bands on them. She can kick my butt on any domestic chore...you should see her fold the laundry. When I got home after four hours at the job I drove onto our dirt driveway to see the boys on their bikes and the youngest on the swing. I walked inside to see the oldest (Grace) making a gourmet lunch for the gang. The clothes were put away, the carpet vacuumed and the dishwasher emptied.
Is this just because it's the first day of summer or is it because I am actually a decent mom and left the kids home to figure it out and to be in charge? It's starting out well. Let's see if we can keep this going. And, isn't this true with anything. We set out to make a change, to start a new (better) habit and the first day goes well. There is a lot of attention and enthusiasm surrounding the new way. The most challenging part is not the decision to make the change, it's maintaining the change.
