Saying Yes

As a mom, a teacher, and a grad student, there is always work I could be doing when I'm at home. Last week, I realized that other than an early morning basketball game, I had an entirely free Saturday. I immediately thought of all the work I could get done. Laundry! Lesson planning! Grad school readings! Conference presentation! I would conquer the world and all the dirty towels!

Then my dad called to say that he would drive up for the basketball game and asked if we would like to go out for brunch afterwards. I said yes. We had a nice brunch at Over the Counter diner and then went on to Jeni's Ice Cream since it also happened to be National Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day. It ended up being a delightful morning.

Then my sister-in-law called to see if we wanted to go to the Ohio State University Artistic Swimming Invitational. I said yes. We saw the most amazing performances! Artistic swimming is a really fascinating and impressive sport. It was so much fun to watch and to hang out together. It was a delightful afternoon.

I've often heard the advice of saying "no" to protect your peace and set boundaries. And while I definitely think that is true, I also think it's important to remember to say "yes." It was delightful to derail my plans of work and spend the day doing fun things with people I love. 

It's now five days later and the work I was intending to do last Saturday has all gotten done. And, I'm still thinking about the fun I had instead. I'm glad I didn't let myself be too busy to say "yes."