Summer Busyness

It seems like every year, our summer gets a little busier than last year's.  Last weekend, feeling a little overwhelmed by it all, I sat down to read our new Ensign, where I found a poem called "Traveling Light" by Sharon Price Anderson about the handcart pioneers.  Here's the quote that really struck me:

Those who go leave

all but seventeen

pounds of poverty

carefully weighed.

Each ounce considered,

they abandon offense,

desert regret,

lessen their load,

I'm not usually a huge fan of poetry, but I loved what I got out of this poem.  The handcart pioneers really had to think about what they were going to carry on their journey--they could only bring 17 pounds of stuff, which had to include clothing and blankets.  It made me think of the extra load I carry of worry and regret.  I don't have room in my summer for stuff like that.  So here's my goal for the rest of the summer:  I'm leaving all the negative stuff behind.

I also found this quote by an unknown author yesterday:  "Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its trouble, it empties today of its strength."