SCHEDULE!!!

“The key is NOT to prioritize what’s on your SCHEDULE, but to SCHEDULE your priorities.”  Stephen Covey

For the most part, we ALL live by a SCHEDULE.  According to Webster’s dictionary, a SCHEDULE is defined as a list of planned activities or things to be done showing the times or dates when they are intended to happen or be done. And we ALL have an identified time to do something or be somewhere.  For instance, we have a specific time and day to be at work, church, school, or an appointment.  And even though we get 24 hours a day, it still doesn’t seem as if it is enough time to get everything done.  What are you making time for?  What’s on your SCHEDULE? Is family on the SCHEDULE?  Is GOD?  Are you on the SCHEDULE?  Do you SCHEDULE your priorities?  OR do you prioritize what’s on your SCHEDULE?  So for this week’s blog, let’s talk SHIP about the priorities on our SCHEDULE!!!!     

Sometimes plans will change and as a result, we may need to adjust, postpone, or modify our SCHEDULES.  Months ago, my mom, sister, and I SCHEDULED a getaway for this weekend but once my brother passed, we considered canceling the outing but felt it would be a welcomed distraction and decided to go. And I am glad we did.  While my mom and sister attended their conference, I relaxed and lounged poolside.  My thoughts were focused on my brother and how now our SCHEDULE would drastically change.  For the past 22 years, after he was hit by a car and lost the use of his legs, without fail, we visited my brother at least 3 days per week and EVERY Sunday. Before my dad got sick, he and my mom would visit 5 days a week. They were there so much they befriended other residents and advocated for them as well.  If we all couldn’t go, someone was definitely going to visit. Visits with my brother were a priority and had become a part of our weekly SCHEDULE.  

A family friend stopped by to pay her respects after my brother passed, and she asked how we managed to visit my brother 3 or 4 days a week and EVERY Sunday.  I responded that is what family does and what love is.  I explained that with him living in a facility the only way that he’d be certain to feel our love was to make him a priority on our SCHEDULE which meant seeing us and hearing us frequently.   And my brother knew he was loved and certainly felt our love. He knew he was a priority on our SCHEDULE. Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of long days after work where we may not have felt like going, but were reminded that he was a priority on the SCHEDULE.

It’s true, most of us live busy lives.  We live by date books, appointment calendars, and things-to-do lists.  We live by a SCHEDULE.  But, what’s on it?  Quality time for family?  Date night with the spouse? Listening and laughing with your child? Spending time with an elderly grandparent?   Visiting a family member or a friend in the hospital or an SNF? Talking to GOD? Praying and reading scripture?  What priorities are on your SCHEDULE?

My brother was certainly the priority on our SCHEDULE and I will certainly miss our weekly visits but am grateful that he taught me that a SCHEDULE should be written in LOVE and its priority should be to make someone feel special and LOVED. So who or what is the priority on your SCHEDULE?

SHIP TALK: What priorities are on your SCHEDULE?

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