Why Bother ?

Well, as I am struggling to even function today, I thought I’d talk about motivation..mainly because, at the moment, I am lacking it and I’m not sure why really, so I thought maybe writing about it might help. I am sure we all have those days when you wake up, peek through the curtains and see a grey, dismal day, and all you want to do is snuggle back under the bed covers. Once there, you quickly decide animals who hibernate have the right idea and you start to wonder if you too could survive until the Spring. Now, before I go on, I know there are people who suffer terribly with SAD and I would never make light of any mental health issue, so I want to make it clear, I am only talking about conscious lack of motivation and nothing more.

So there I was, lying in my bed, surrounded by warm, cuddly blankets and I considered everything I had to do during my day. As always, there were the usual household things, like finding something for dinner, (obviously this only entails me trekking to the nearest supermarket, not sprinting out the door, clutching a bow and arrow a la Jennifer Lawrence in ‘The Hunger Games’ to go hunting).

 

 

 

 

 But just as I mentally wandered the all-too- familiar aisles, a small, mischievous voice in the back of my mind kept reminding me, I probably had something in the fridge already which would make a wonderful meal, so why bother going out? Sadly, once I had crawled into the kitchen, it became blatantly apparent, even Nigella Lawson would struggle to make anything even slightly edible, out of the sad ingredients I owned. Strangely, it turns out there are almost no recipes which require, chocolate sprinkles for cake decorating, a small jar of unfeasibly-hot mustard, three slices of cheese and a yogurt which upon closer inspection, seemed to be breeding life forms. You would think this realisation would have spurred me to throw on some clothes and immediately go shopping, but I am almost ashamed to admit, this wasn’t my first thought. As I hauled myself back into the welcoming warmth of my bed, I hit upon another notion – instead of shopping, I could fast for the day, which would mean, I could stay in my nest after all – woohoo! My joy was only fleeting, when I remembered the fact I am a mother, and part of that job, as even the average house sparrow knows, is feeding your young. So it was with a heavy heart, I clambered out of bed again, dressed and went shopping – much to the obvious relief of my offspring.

My point in telling you all this, was how easy it is to think of reasons NOT to do something, as you’ve seen, it was only the thought of letting my family down, which actually gave me the motivation to move at all. A further example, would be trying to find a reason to open your mail every day, especially when you’re pretty sure most of it will be bills or something else equally unpleasant, which you have no desire to know. In that situation, your only motivation might be to either not collect your mail at all, or, if you do, put it unopened in a drawer so you don’t have to deal with the contents.

 

 

 

After all, that mischievous voice will whisper, if you don’t read it, you don’t have to acknowledge its presence at all. Obviously, I wouldn’t recommend this as a good way of coping with any form of communication, as sooner or later, the people who have written to you are very likely to feel aggrieved by you ignoring them and will potentially take action which will demand your attention, like a court summons!

 

And there are many other situations too, like having a bath or shower, sadly I have known too many people who struggle to find the motivation to even wash! They glance wearily at the bathroom door, imagining themselves having to find a suitable towel, get undressed, wash their hair, find the shower gel, find the conditioner etc etc – the list goes on. Having considered all the time and effort this is going to demand, they will then warily sniff an armpit, apply a liberal spraying of antiperspirant and decide they smell fine and can probably go another day without getting wet.

Before I go, even writing this to you today, I have to admit, did involve a certain amount of internal debate – motivationally speaking. As I reached for my trusty laptop, I suddenly remembered the free magazine I had received at the supermarket, it was one of those celebrity ones, filled with stories about the rich and famous (although what most of them are famous for is open to question). So I looked at the magazine, smothered in lurid headlines and then back at my waiting laptop, which to do? Work on maintaining my blog or – amongst other highlights- read the latest ‘scandalous’ revelation about who had a boob job and is now staggering under the weight of her bowling ball sized chest? I have to confess, the magazine almost won because I realised I would be able to comfortably munch on a cookie while I was reading, whereas typing takes both hands. But as you have obviously gathered, I found the motivation to write and I am so glad I did, where did it come from? Oh that’s simple, I didn’t want to let you down, but with this post now written, it’s cookie time for me while reading the ‘inside story’ on those inflatable boobs..until the next time…

Take care out there xx