Before May Madness Starts

Sunday, April 2, 2017


This post is for myself and my fellow moms. We all share compassion when we read the Facebook rants about how "the month of May sucks." May is too busy. May is the month from hades because everything is due and every deadline is final. May is the month that every educator becomes a tyrant simply because they are following the plan they made in the Fall. I read those types of rants every year and this year I decided to encourage myself and you with the following facts:

“May” is not the enemy. We always look for someone to blame and blaming the month of May is not productive because it doesn’t work. If it did work we’d stop reposting the famous blogger that made this complaint known outside of the internet world for 15 seconds.
Friend, May is not the enemy because there is only one person who is mindfully entering things in your May schedule: you. Yep, you are the one who chooses what stays in your schedule. The great news is, you can change your May schedule if you really want to.

If the end of the school year is naturally overbooked, it is wise to decide what are the non-negotiables and what you can do without. I believe you’ll find some peace just knowing what your focus for the month should be. You may have to be extra selective about the volunteer opportunities you agree to carry on.
You have to be extra mindful to rest more, drink plenty water and eat well. You make the month of May happen and a healthy mother is a productive mother. You see, May only sucks if you let it and you are in control of what goes in your schedule.

My last advice is to watch our level of ungratefulness in the month of May. Complaining blinds us from seeing that our complaints are unfounded in reality. Reality is, our kids are enjoying a great educational experience in America. Not every mother in the world enjoys the blessing of having their kids in good schools (or in schools at all). Reality is, our kids are healthy and strong and so are we. I can honestly say that we possess more opportunities than most of the world does and for that, I can say that we are truly blessed.

Count your blessings and start deleting non-essentials from your May schedule my friend. Let’s see if things don’t change a lot from what we experienced last year.