Life is full of opposites. There’s up and there’s down; there’s hot and then there’s cold; there’s the rich guy and there’s the polar opposite, the poor guy. There’s fun and the opposite of fun, is chores. You notice that the trash can is full and, if you are married,your wife will probably bring it to your attention, because it’s something she will probably refuse to tackle herself. She will remind you of this chore of yours as you sit down, drink in hand, to watch some TV. I think she may have known for a while, but she waited. Such is the power of the chore, that it can shift your mood. The pot plants need water, and they need it now. There is no way it can wait, as their very lives depend on your watering them now. It’s probably dark, and on a Sunday night. Monday might be too late, but you check the weather forecast in case nature can help you with your chores; just this one time please. Then there’s the dishes, the dog needing to be walked, the bills that need to be paid or the ironing that needs to be done and if it’s late, you only do the bare necessities and you never do enough, cause you’re ironing again, 2 days later.
Chores have a bright side. When you’re a parent, and your children are old enough, you can get them to do chores. Mostly you will give them your chores, and you will label it ‘a way to teach you responsibility’. This is very smart from a parent’s perspective, and you just hope your kids don’t catch on! The one thing about a chore is that it’s something that’s really important and actually doing it will see your life filled with neatness and order and cleanliness. Take out the trash, polish your shoes, sweep the floor, wash the car, wash the dishes, make the bed, pick up the dog poop and rake the leaves. Adults procrastinate, kids moan and doing it will be for the best but we don’t want to. Making a mess, stinking things out, letting the grass grow long and watching your dog get fat: easy peazy, and takes no effort. Bizarre. Why can’t ‘doing nothing’ produce pleasing results? Weird indeed.
I’ve always had this odd theory that it’s easier to do nothing than it is to do something, so if you want to achieve something worthwhile, you need to put in effort. Too long for a fridge magnet, but it makes some sense. Very little of worth comes from doing nothing, and to achieve in this world is tough. If it were easy, more people would be doing it and it wouldn’t be special. I love this quote:
If you want to achieve what others don’t, you have to do what others won’t
Too few people are prepared to ‘do what it takes’, as if it’s a chore. A relationship takes work. A successful business takes hard work and sacrifice. A beautiful garden, worthy of a magazine spread, takes effort, time and patience. Being a top sportsman requires more than just arriving on match day.
I still loathe chores, but they are an important part of life and of responsibility and they are not going away, so I need to do them. The only thing that I can change is my attitude, and maybe get a bit of help and be accountable to someone.
What are you going to do today that will require you to be disciplined, or perhaps to change your attitude?