The Power of 15 Minutes

One thing the Fly Lady system is big on is teaching you the power of 15 minutes. You set a timer for 15 minutes and accomplish what you can in that time on a focused goal. This is really a great concept for me, and one I heard before on my invisible disabilities support list. After 15 minutes or so, my knees or hands or back or something usually give out on me.

The other thing she tries to teach you is the power of baby steps. To break every thing down into baby steps and take one step at a time. This is a hard one for the Perfectionist brat who I am convinced lives inside every woman. We want to start something and finish it all in one fell swoop! Consequently, Perfectionist's sister Procrastinator rears her head and tells us if we cannot finish a task today, then why start it? So we put it off, becoming more and more anxious/depressed and fretful as the undone task keeps growing before our eyes.

When you have little ones, sometimes all you can grab are 15 minutes at any one time!

Today I set my timer for 15 minutes, donned my lovely new gloves that Andrea and Vivian sent me for my birthday and tackled the top shelf and top door compartment of my refrigerator. I have been doing a good job of keeping the outside shiny, but as soon as I opened it, I would be depressed at the sight that greeted me. The thought of cleaning the whole thing at once was enough to tire me out just thinking about it.

I resolved today to do what I could in 15 minutes, and then make myself stop. Consequently, now I smile when I open the refrigerator because I also had time to wipe down the entire outer rim of the inside compartment in addition to cleaning the top shelf, top *ceiling*, and top door compartment. I know another 15 minutes from now very soon I will have 2 more clean shleves and in another 15 minutes, a clean drawer, and in still another 15 a second clean drawer, while also cleaning the shelves in the door one at a time each 15 minutes. So with 45 more minutes of work broken down into 15 minute segments, I will soon have my gleaming refrigerator.

My gloves the girls sent me are so adorable with little pink bows and a ruffled trim! They are almost too pretty to use, but Andrea has been teaching me the power of blessing myself and using my pretty things, not saving them for a day that may never come. How many ladies have you heard of, perhaps your own mothers or grandmothers, who died with entire sets of handkerchiefs, nightgowns, sheets, towels, dishes, decorative soaps, what have you, all stored away brand new and never touched, waiting for that elusive day to be used and enjoyed?

That is a concept my generation got from our mothers and grandmothers because they survived the World Wars and the Great Depression. When decluttering my kitchen, it was hard to throw out the butter bowls and whipped topping bowls. Of course, the greener me should have saved those and stopped buying nice plastic containers with lids. So maybe Granny has something to teach us younger folks after all. :-) I am old enough to remember the junk drawer at home filled to the max with rubber bands from newspapers and bread twist ties.

Of course, now we have zippy bags and it is hard to find bread with twist ties. Now they put those little plastic tabbies on it, which I despise as no one ever puts them back on around here. They either tie a knot in the bag, making it more complicated to open later without ripping it, or they just leave the bag open for the bread to go stale.

Anyway, love yourself today and use something special you may be saving for that elusive someday. Tackle a big job in 15 minutes, only doing as much as you can during that 15 minutes. Then treat yourself to a cup of a special tea or coffee blend in your prettiest mug or cup. go on! You deserve it!