Do It but Don't Over Do It!

Last week I realized I had become addicted to the popular game, Words With Friends (which my older children have informed me...I am totally behind and that trend is so over).

I love spending those moments in my day that should be spent simply sitting patiently...like at a traffic stop for 2 minutes (can't do it) or while I wait to cash a check for 90 seconds (nope just can't sit there) playing WWF.  It is the perfect (and quite educational...if I could actually remember the awesome words I play) time killer!  My impatient feelings and anxieties associated with having to "wait" upon doctors, lunch dates, kids to come out of practices, oh yeah, traffic lights etc., have completely dissipated since WWF.

Until last week...

Our family was headed to Williamsburg, VA (a 3 hour drive). Garth was listening to music, the kids were watching a movie and there I sat feeling a bit bored.  I had already checked all of my friends status updates on Facebook and made my moves on the three WWF games I was currently playing.  So instead of enjoying the music, starting a lovely conversation with my husband, losing myself in my thoughts, or simply enjoying the beauty that passed by my window, I came up with what I thought was a better idea.

I posted on Facebook that I had indeed become addicted to WWF and was looking for some new opponents. I was currently playing with 3 friends and loving the ease and joy it was trying to come up with great words that gave me the upper hand (Jean and Paige, please don't mention the final scores of those games).  It was a blast. So I figured that more games would equal more fun, right?!  I mean, I was totally bored (or at least thought I was). I was waiting for my opponents to make their move...I had already made mine.

Within minutes of making that comment, I had 4 friends invite me to a game. I was over the moon!  I immediately started plotting and planning each word and placing the letters on the best places!  And then there was another invite...and another..and yet another.  I said yes. And then yes. And yes. It didn't take long until I went from playing 3 people to 20.  Needless to say, the ride to Williamsburg went quickly...I was so busy with all of my WWF "work" I now had to do.

When I returned home late that night, I lay in bed, working the letters to each game to get the upper hand on each opponent. 

But it didn't take long before I started losing control.  I had so many games and so many letters that I couldn't see straight. I was getting no where fast.  Friends would blast me with 80 point words and I would feel not only plain ol' bad but actually stupid.

So then I started studying J-words, and Z-words, and words with X's in them...I was literally taking hours of my day to play these silly games.  What was a fun activity to fill a few extra minutes in my day turned into a full time job.

It became a disaster.

How many times do we take a "good" thing and it becomes a mess?  My dear friend, Jean shared a quote with me last week,

"Just because you CAN, doesn't mean you SHOULD."

So as this new year begins and you surround yourself with goals a plenty, be sure to chose those things you should.

Do Something but don't do EVERYTHING!

I have always loved the words from Dallin H. Oaks in his talk, Good, Better, Best.

"We should begin by recognizing the reality that just because something is good is not a sufficient reason for doing it. The number of good things we can do far exceeds the time available to accomplish them. Some things are better than good, and these are the things that should command priority attention in our lives."

Simply pick one or two things you want to do this year and gosh darn it...DO IT...but Don't OVER DO IT!

Focus on the BEST in You!

(and by the way, here is a list of Q-words that don't need a U)

QINDARKA QINDARS QINTARS QWERTYS FAQIRS QANATS QINDAR QINTAR QWERTY SHEQEL TRANQS FAQIR QAIDS QANAT QOPHS TRANQ QAID QATS QOPH QAT