Messy

This quote is from a Wall Street Journal article, "Some Days, Having It All Means It All Falls Apart." 

"Shouldering many roles, from dad to dog owner to team leader, makes us happier, says Yael Schonbrun, a clinical psychologist and assistant professor at Brown University, though it can also make some situations harder. 'When we have a life that has a lot of meaning and purpose, it's often quite uncomfortable,' she says."

Funny that the quote says "dad" even though all of the examples in the article were of women.  But I digress. The article's steps to take when messiness happens were on point:

1. Pause. Take three breaths.

2. Reach out to a peer first (so you are not constantly bringing crises to your boss); then bring your boss some possible solutions.

3. Try and find the silver lining.

What's hard in the moment is feeling like you are the only one that doesn't have their shit together. I wish I had figured out when I was much younger that I wasn't the only one on the struggle bus from time to time. 

I can certainly appreciate now how often a shared eye roll, a kind word, or a helping hand made all the difference -- fellow moms and battle buddies that provided invaluable support. Not to discount my awesome husband, but sometimes we needed more than the two of us to keep the plates spinning. That's what makes those messy times good stories to laugh about now.