Sometimes people walk around complaining that their plate is too full. And sometimes it is. But then there are those times that I stand back and look at those complaining and want to scream from a mountain top, “You have no idea what full is!”

And currently, I am not talking about my life right now. However, this is probably the busiest I have ever been in my life; but, in my eyes, my plate is not too full. For a brief synopsis, here is a peek into my life, currently (and I am not listing this to get sympathy, I am listing these things, to prove my point):

  • Working mother
  • Mother of 3 (all boys, mind you)
  • Husband travels for a living as an airline pilot
  • Full-time job as a real estate appraiser
  • Full-time job running my own marketing company
  • Summer job managing a country club pool
  • One child is in FFA, skeet shooting tournaments, and high school
  • Middle child is in sports, piano, and daily homework
  • Smallest child is in sports, piano, and daily homework
  • Cooking, laundry, cleaning, baths every night, and ow our yard weekly
  • PTO Executive board member
  • Just started an education foundation for our school district

So my point to this is, yes, that is an insane amount of stuff for one human to have on their plate; but, I do this by choice. I don’t have to be on PTO but I want to be, I want to be around the schools to see my kids and help all the students get what they deserve. I don’t have to be in the Rotary Club, but I am to see and meet people. I didn’t have to start an education foundation, but I did to better the lives and study environment of our students. However, you may hear me say, “I have lost my mind” or “There isn’t enough Oddbins Vodka in the world…” (all jokes, mind you). But you will never hear me say my plate is too full.

My plate has been too full at one point in my life. I looked above daily and asked Him, how he expects me to move on and to survive, and to put my big girl pants on, and to put a smile on my face for my little boy. That is when you know your plate is too full.

Your plate is too full when you are sitting at the end of a hospital bed holding your 8-year-old’s hand, after her third round of chemotherapy; a full plate is trying to explain to your 16-year-old soccer star son, who managed to live after his friend flipped his truck Friday night, that he will never walk again; a full plate is waking up one morning and your spouse is gone, either by their choice or because their flight from LA to Washington D.C. didn’t make it.

Those are full plates. I understand we all have a lot going on, we all get pulled in 900 directions, but that to me, is what a calendar and a To-Do list is for. At the end of the day, if that PTO email wasn’t sent out, the world won’t stop spinning. But at the end of the day, if the blood type doesn’t match your child’s who has been on the transplant list for eight months, that means that the world could possibly stop spinning.

So next time you feel overwhelmed, or overloaded by everything on your plate; please remember that mom who had to pick out her baby’s headstone yesterday, or that dad who has to carry his little girl down the aisle rather than walk next to her, or that brother that didn’t get to see his kid brother’s first goal because he lost his eyesight in a car accident.

To me, your calendar and your life is as full as you make; but your plate, that is something entirely different, your plate is out of your control.