Be Kind, Be on Time

A few weeks ago, I decided I was going to stop being late.

I’m late almost everywhere I go. I hate it.

So I decided I was done. I was going to read a book on time management, practice the principles, and be on time, no matter what. Punctuality would be my top priority.

And you know what happened?

I was mean to my kids.

In my determination to get out the door on time in the mornings, I fussed, nagged, and occasionally shook toothbrushes in anger to motivate my preschoolers to move quickly.

So then I made another decision.

My NEW priority is kindness.

And amazingly, the goal of kindness has done more for my punctuality issues than I could have imagined.

“I need to go to bed, so I won’t sleep late and be grumpy towards my kids in the morning.”

“I don’t have time to put on makeup today, because I need those fifteen minutes to herd dawdling children into the car.”

Being unkind to my children is something that shakes me down to my core. So now I am learning to practice kindness first. And because an unhurried schedule is a key to that kindness, some of my time issues are being refined as well.

I became a wee bit (okay, a lot) frustrated with my Lego-absorbed five-year-old this morning as we were trying to leave the house. And I have no idea how we’re all going to get to elementary school on time next year.

But for today…deep breaths, love for my children, and kind words will get us where we need to be (just maybe a little bit late).