So there I am bouncing back and forth between two apps because I have dueling checklists and not a lot of time. To make things more difficult, I had one list open on the iPhone, and another on the iPad. I was so focused on organizing the tasks that I didn't have the devices together, so I absentmindedly paced to and from the computer desk with my iPad gripped in my hands. Finally, I had everything organized and set the iPad down on the kitchen counter with a satisfying plop. That's when I noticed the fork.
"What's that doing there?" I wondered to myself. A lone fork in the middle of paper piles. Not very tidy of me. Then I remembered. Oh! I had grabbed the fork to eat with it. Somehow between grabbing the fork and turning around to the microwave where my food awaited my eager consumption, I had become distracted by organizing my tasks for the afternoon.
So I shook my head and laughed at myself.
I use to write about this all the time, but haven't in a while. Laughing at yourself in these situations is a healthy response. I am still surprised how hard it was to learn years ago. I had to first unlearn getting angry with myself. That particular response did me no good and just made me miserable—because I'm absentminded. I'm always going to forget something.
Fortunately, bad habits can be unlearned. Today marks the second anniversary from the last time I swore. It took many attempts over many years to kick that pernicious habit, but I prevailed. Learning to laugh at myself took years as well. Regrettably, remembering to eat is still a work in progress.
I just noticed a sentence ago that I grabbed the fork and tucked it in my elbow while I wrote this entry on my iPhone. Here's hoping I'll have eaten by the time you read this.
