Playing the Waiting Game

I'm sitting down with a cup of tea finally, the big kids are next door and the little one is watching the Wiggles (again). I'm exhausted, and by the look of the house I've done virtually nothing.

So much of my time is spent waiting. I wait for the kids to put their shoes on so we can go to the park. I wait for the washing machine to finish so I can put it on the line, during which I'm waiting for the boys to decide what they want for breakfast. Waiting for them to finally fall asleep at the end of the day. Waiting for an email reply.

The thing is, though, is that I need to be maximising my waiting time so I'm actually using it to do something productive. I spend half an hour throwing a frisbee in the yard, or pushing kids on the swing, and although these are important activities, they leave much of the grey matter free for other endeavours. The four-week period in which I tried desperately (and unsuccessfully) to get my synopsis written were a case in point. The story was at the forefront of my mind, and all my available brain-time was spent on it. I got heaps done! Not only that, it invigorated me, I had so much more energy for other things.

Today I'm exhausted because my mental activity has been taken up waiting for an email. None have come. Who cares! It's hardly the end of the universe. Shows me though, where the flabby bits of my mind are. I need to dust off some of the big questions from the top shelf of the cupboard: is my front story strong? Is my back story causal? If God's called me to write books, what kind of books does He want me to write? What does He think about my book reviews? What does He think about my stories? About where my mind is going?

The dishes are calling me. Tea's finished. So, mind, where are we going to go now?