Getting things done

Everyone, it seems, has too much to do. We become overwhelmed when we look at all that's before us. "Whew," we sigh, "How will I ever catch up?" I grew up hearing. "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today."

You look at the stack of papers on your desk or the load of laundry you need to wash. If you're a student, you cringe at all the assignments and papers you must complete. Whatever one's situation or state in life, there's always an amount of dread when you dwell on what must be done. I recently read a verse that spoke about tackling immediate jobs and consequently alleviating anxiety about having too much to do. I decided to take the advice.

"Begin a difficult task in its easy stage because large problems grow from small ones. Begin a large task in its formative state because complex issues originate from simple ones. But beware of those who promise quick and easy solutions. You can then accomplish great tasks without ever having to struggle with them." (Lao Tzu)

All things start from scratch -- laudable endings come from insignificant beginnings. Matthew 13: 31-32 talks about the Kingdom of Heaven, comparing its growth with that of the tiny mustard seed. The mustard seed begins tiny but turns into a sizable bush.

Everything goes from less to more. When children begin attending school, they feel they are in above their heads. They recite their ABCs from memory, but many can't recognize them by sight. "This is too much," they think, and the youngsters sometimes become frustrated and despair. You tell them they must learn to read before they can accomplish much of anything. But upon hearing you recite words from a story book, the task can still seem insurmountable to the unlearned children. Yet as they master one letter at a time, their vocabulary grows into a significant number of sentences and ideas. By learning in small segments, they slowly reach their reading goals.

Not long ago, I talked with a woman who said she was tired of all the paperwork she had to do. "It's just too much," she said. Everything nowadays requires a string of information on paper. It does seem like a daunting task, but the mistake people make is waiting until the pile grows from a manageable one to a large, seemingly impossible one.

If people complete what they need to achieve immediately, without procrastinating, they find there are enough hours in the day. It is when actions are put off and things accumulate that we become stressed and feel rushed. If one approaches his responsibilities as they come, the gradual process seems natural. It's when one obligation piles on top of another that the load becomes daunting and you want to postpone it even longer.

Just as the progression of cutting a tree, building a house, or making a garment begins with one action, projects are finished only after they are begun -- a little at a time.

Completed results come from many small endeavors. Nothing is done all at once. When you handle, finish or suffer through one seemingly insignificant job or circumstance as it arises, the finishing point takes care of itself -- one thing building on another. What once seemed impossible is concluded without undue effort and worry -- gradually and without resistance. Natural order presides.

Ellen Shuck holds degrees in psychology, religious education and spiritual direction and provides spiritual direction to people at her office.