The past week and a half has been interesting. In addition to the usual back-to-school insanity (here, fill out ten forms online…and then we’ll send you a dozen more the first day of school), busy times at work and a book just weeks away from release, my muse smacked me in the head and sent me on a much needed writing binge.

Yeah, I cracked a little by Wednesday.

But…here’s the thing. There was something going on the background that magnified every hiccup. I won’t go into detail, but I will say this: I’ve never been more happy to hear the word “benign” in my life. Nor am I ever going to miss a mammogram.

Having something like that hanging over your head makes it really hard to stay rational, objective and focused. It taught me something, though. Being in that situation, my priorities became completely different. I forced myself to rest more, found myself being more patient with my kids and enjoyed every small moment that broke through the fog of worry. For a brief moment, I slowed down and just lived.

Now things are back to their fast and furious pace. I have a lot on my plate–day job, family, passion/author job, church and all the little administrative things that keep a family running.  But I also have this cold dose of perspective and I understand that I don’t have to be all things at all times. It’s okay to lose myself in a good book for a little bit. If I don’t make it to the gym/cleaners/store, the world’s not going to end. I’m a work in progress and it’ll take me a while to let all that go. I just hope a year from now, my stress level is lower and my “fun” level is up.

Who’s with me? Want to try to let it go for a while?