This is my fifth year with a “Happy Planner.” I stumbled upon this planner community quite by accident when I realized that if I didn’t start being more intentional about what I chose to do every day that Overshadowed was never going to grow to be the theater company I wanted it to be.
My planning journey has morphed over time. Some weeks I’m really good at planning and following through and recording my thoughts. Sad to say, other weeks my pages are blank.
Should you ever be too tired to plan? Or not in the mood ?
No.
Even if you are too tired to decorate the pages that fill your planner you should never be too tired to at least write something. It could be a phrase that summarizes your week…for example. “Major zoom crash on first day back to school.” Or “Baby cutting teeth…so tired.” Or maybe just a Bible verse. Surely we have time for at least that?
For the first year of my Happy Planner life I bought a few sticker books that were motivational. I wrote my day-to-day “chores.” and took great joy in crossing them off when I accomplished them. The next year I subscribed to a kit from “The Planner Society.” I followed some inspirational planners on Instagram and discovered that planning now brought out the creative side in me! Even when I had a hard week I really looked forward to relaxing and “creating” a masterpiece (in my eyes) of what the next week would look like. The next year, I was inspired by my creative middle daughter who also uses a Happy Planner. She takes a tremendous amount of photos and creates a planner that is full of memories. When you hold her planner in your hand you almost feel the experiences and love of life she has poured into her year of planning! Inspired by her, I began to add more and more photos in my planner and started adding to my goals of regularly blogging and recording memories.
Then COVID.
This year it was a struggle to find anything to put in my planner. So I began to record the COVID cases in Illinois and the top 7 states that were a COVID battleground. I don’t know why. I think it was something to watch. I kept thinking that someone will find it interesting one day to watch the totals go up and up.
Then I heard this phrase–The Art of Noticing. I’m sad to say I never realized it was a book. I thought it was a new motivational phrase to get me to stop thinking about the negatives and start noticing all the positives in my life. And it worked. Slowly, I started adding pictures that I received from my kids. I added postcards and letters that I received and I started noticing that I have a lot to be thankful for. Believe me, I always knew that, but REMEMBERING it and WRITING it down and talking about it helped give me something to look forward to.
So this is how it works.
1) Every day of your life tells a story. How exciting is that?? Your story might be the beginning of a new book or a new chapter or maybe even the climax of the plot, but it is always a page turner if you allow it to be. What did you notice about your life today? Let me give you an example. Saturday was our annual gala. Usually we hold it inside at a banquet hall. This year, we held it outside so we could have more people (Because of the restrictions of COVID) As I looked around I saw FAMILIES. Usually, people don’t get to celebrate with their entire family because it isn’t exactly what younger children would enjoy. This year, the young and old enjoyed a night out on the lawn! What could have started as a “this is another thing COVID took” story, ended up with a blessing. Today, I have been a little overwhelmed by how much sadness is on facebook. It is a hard time right now and many of us are feeling the weight of things lost. We are anxious and sad and discouraged. While I was thinking about the heaviness of that, I stopped and just for a moment thought about a new project I had the chance to discuss with someone today. While the project seems a little daunting on my own, I’m excited about sharing the vision with someone else who has great ideas. What a blessing! Somedays you have to look a little harder, but the story is always there.
2) There is beauty in life. Every breath that you take. The fact that you can walk, talk, think, communicate. How long has it been since you sat down and really thought about the miracle of life? Take a moment right now. Take a deep breath. Close your eyes and slowly exhale. Now open your eyes. What are you thankful for in life? I’m thankful for a good night’s sleep. Some days I have to get up and go to the bathroom several times during the night. (Thank you old age!) I loved sleeping soundly last night. I have a friend who can no longer get out and run. Whenever I run, I think of her. Thank you, God. Even though I don’t love it–I’m so thankful for it!
3) Beauty and nature. There is so much to say here, but remind me when winter comes to still be thankful for nature. I love the summer so much and have enjoyed the heat, the birds, the hummingbirds, my garden, the sun….I could go on and on.
4) Beauty of Conversations. Have you ever thought about writing down the fact that you got to talk to your best friend or mother or whoever? Write down one moment in the conversation that is meaningful. What a treasure that will be when one day you look back and remember that you both shared an old family story that caused you to remember something remarkable about your mom. I’m a little jealous that we didn’t have facebook when my kids where growing up. My daughter, Becca, regularly writes down conversations she has with her kids. I take a picture of that conversation and paste it in my journal. There are so many things I wanted to never forget when my kids where growing up. I am envious of all the easy ways there are to record things now.
5) Daily Routines. What? You might be thinking that no one would be interested in what you routinely do. Have you ever picked up a diary from a hundred years ago? They used to record the price of items they bought. They recorded where they went and who they saw. Many times they didn’t expound upon it at all. They just wrote it down. I love it. When I read accounts like this I can immediately put myself in their time period and understand what life itself looked like.
May I challenge you to start a planner? It doesn’t have to be big or fancy. It just needs to be something you feel comfortable with. Something that will encourage you to write and dream.
May I also encourage you that there is no right or wrong way to use it? Some people just use a regular notebook and THAT’S OKAY! The secret is to find what you enjoy, what you can handle and what motivates you to keep it up!
Next, may I challenge you to slow down and appreciate your life day-by-day? Taking the time to stop and record your thoughts will be a wonderful gift for future generations and perhaps it will make us all less fretful and anxious and remind us exactly how blessed we truly are.
I’d like to leave you with a few verses.
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you…Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Psalm 118:24 “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you. declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Proverbs 12:25 “Anxiety weighs down the heart of a man, but a good word cheers it up.”
Lamentations 3:22-23 “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
If you have any questions about planners or journaling or verses to share I’d love to hear from you! If you haven’t taken the time to follow me it would mean so much to me if you would! And one more thing…my instagram is Reba.Hervas, if you’d like to follow me there!
I hope you have blessed week!
Until next time!
From the Wings 