Turf wars
It was the perfect night for stargazing: 55 degrees with clear skies. The Astronomy Club's telescopes were set up along the 50 yard line on the football field and kids from grades K-12 were scattered about. I sat on a blanket with another mom, simultaneously marveling about seeing Saturn's rings and chuckling at our second graders playing tag and rolling around on the turf in between stargazing. Core childhood memories were locked in.
When we got home, I realized that somehow, the three of us had turf stuck all over our jackets. It was late and I was eager to get to bed, so I grabbed my lint roller and went over the jackets, figuring I'd gotten the bulk of it. Boy, was I ever wrong. In the light of day the next morning, I saw that the green grass was ALL OVER the mudroom floor; it had "static clung" to the front of the white cabinets; and, to boot, it had somehow rooted itself into the seams of my son's pants (inevitably, his favorite).
With the help of the lint roller, packaging tape, Scotch tape, and the vacuum, I started in on the mess. This time, in earnest and without rushing through it. But the turf somehow multiplied and would not be ignored. I spent an inordinate amount of time using cuticle scissors to cut the grass out of the pant seams... and I'm still not done! As I sat there, excising blade by blade, I couldn't help but think about the turf as a metaphor. After all, I rushed to clean it up, and well, haste makes waste.
How often do we do that? Man, I gotta tell you, I often rush through my daily lymphedema management, paying it lip service and then paying the price with a bulging ankle or congested foot the next day, requiring twice as much time to alleviate. Not to mention, it wasn't until the fresh perspective of a new, sunny day that I saw the turf for what it was: everywhere. Kind of like how sometimes we don't realize an ignored problem is growing arms and legs all around us, laying down roots and showing up when we least expect it... all because we haven't tackled it right the first time or hastily tried to remediate it. (I bet some light bulbs just went off!)
Too bad we can't take a lint roller to clean up life's messes or scissors to remove that pesky problem. But what we CAN do is be aware. We can take a beat when we realize that the "turf" might be everywhere and the quick cleanup just won't do. We can blink our eyes a few times or even sleep on a situation to wake up with fresh perspective... and the energy to tackle it.
But for now, I’m off to cut turf out of some pants….!
Did you enjoy this blog? For more of my content, sign up to receive my blog, personal and professional development tips, and book reviews! Follow me on Instagram and LinkedIn, and kindly use the social sharing buttons to share this blog!
