I’m slightly embarrassed to admit it now, but when I was in college, painting my nails at least twice a week was one of my top priorities. It was up there with food, sleep and sex. As soon as my polish started to chip, it would quickly be removed and replaced with a new color. I loved bright, vivid colors and I rarely wore anything that looked natural. A fresh manicure was part of how I felt good about myself, even when things were not going as planned.
I took “Live Like Your Nail Color” very seriously.
I mention this now because I stood at the fax machine yesterday and contemplated my fingernails. I haven’t polished them in about two weeks but I have yet to remove the remnants of my last manicure. I’m not too concerned about it because I now stick to neutral colors or baby pinks. Sometimes, I embrace clear nail polish only for weeks at a time. It is difficult to notice until you stare at my hands for more than a few seconds, and even if you notice then, I don’t really care. Home renovations, dish washing and yard work are not exactly manicure friendly.
Somewhere along the line, my priorities changed. My red nail polish has been mostly retired. And that’s okay. Why? Because I know those priorities will change again.
As people, we should be constantly changing, evolving and growing. Usually, those changes are subtle and don’t have a huge impact on our daily living. But over time, those changes really start to add up. It is only when we make a Major Life Decision that the people around us really start to take notice. But when we think of our Major Life Decision in terms of a series of small logical changes, that Major Life Decision isn’t so major.
It is that first tiny step that really is the big deal.
Back to my nail polish: as I stood at the fax machine, I really had to fight the urge to berate myself. When did I get so sloppy? When did I stop caring? What else was I going to stop caring about? Would I ever shave my legs with the same neglect that I now paint my nails?
But then it hit me. It wasn’t that I stopped caring. It was that I started caring more. About different things. About bigger things. My priorities changed but I didn’t notice. Or rather, I didn’t notice that I stopped prioritizing my fingernails but I did notice that I started prioritizing the home my husband and I are renovating.
The key in all of this is keeping track of what your core priorities really are. Is your priority a vibrant career where you make tons of money or is your priority spending time with your mate? Do you prioritize reading new books or do you prioritize finding unique experiences?
You need to know what the core aspects of your life are so that the little things don’t trip you. When you focus on the little problem, you are avoiding the aspect of your life that really needs attention. It may be easier to put off dealing with the big problem but you spend so much time on the little things that you’ll never make the one change that you truly needed.
Kristina Summers said...
1I often find myself thinking along very similar lines. When I was younger my toes were always perfect, my hair never had noticable roots…
Now with three kids, a full time job that involves a ton of time in the field and keeping up the house, I rarely take the time to keep up what was previously so important.
I agree that I havn’t gotten sloppy, I just have changed the way I think, and my priorities have been modified.
I would rather play baseball with my boys, or slosh through the swamp tp get the perfect photo of a rare bat then have perfect nails. Life is bigger than my polish, or my hair.
Great post.
08/11/08 8:44 PM | Comment Link
Rebecca said...
2This was just the post I needed today! I have a hard time prioritizing because I don’t always know what I want. But if I look around at what I’m doing it’s obvious what my priorities are.
08/12/08 10:17 AM | Comment Link
Rosie Reilman said...
3Very cool reflection. Glad Rebecca bookmarked it so that I could find it! My favorite part is that you said, it’s ok because priorities change, and we are always changing and evolving. So true. I have had a few moments like that myself where I look back at what I held important a year ago as to what I do now, and it’s different. For better and maybe even for a little bit worse. But as you said, it’s ok because I’ll change as I need to. Thanks for posting!
08/12/08 12:32 PM | Comment Link
Dorie said...
4Thanks for the comments! Its nice to know that other women experience this same shift in their own lives.
08/13/08 8:44 AM | Comment Link
Babies? Maybe Later » Dorie Morgan’s Rising Up said...
5[...] least if you are a woman. In the case of my birth father, it didn’t seem to slow him down.) Children change priorities. They change your [...]
08/18/08 3:12 PM | Comment Link