Our Rural Roots
You Can't Do It All
February is an extremely busy time of year for many, our family included. Between speaking at producer meetings, calving and Texas major stock shows, we have been running ourselves ragged. Several times over the past couple of months people have looked at me and said, "I don't know how you do it all."
I always struggle with how to respond. The short answer is, I am not doing it all. It is so easy to look at other people's lives from the outside or on social media, and think they have things more together, they get more done in a day, they are just better at this life thing.
But no one is doing it all. That is something I must remind myself occasionally, as well. It's easy to fall into the trap of believing we are failing based on perceptions of perfection.
So, again, let me be clear: I am not doing it all. I often have dirty laundry piled up that is nearly as tall as me. I have not seen my kitchen tabletop in at least a month, because that is where I fold the clean laundry and never have time to get it put up. My floor is only swept when the woman I hire to clean my house comes every other week. I've given up on trying to manage my children's room organization and have taken to just closing the door. I have someone pick the kids up after school while I am still at work.
I wish I could find a magic solution for the empty feed bags that pile up and seem to duplicate nightly in the barn. I would love to make time to read a book, watch a TV show or get a pedicure.
Those things will come soon enough. Instead, my goal is to accept that it is fine not to do it all and hope that sliver of grace brings a much-needed moment of calm in this busy season.
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Tiffany Dowell Lashmet juggles family, farming, writing, livestock and a career in ag law from the Texas Panhandle. Follow her blog https://alwaysafarmkid.com/…, on Instagram at alwaysafarmkid and @TiffDowell on social platform X.
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