LFL # 28 => Procrastination – When does it end?

I was a mischievous young boy and once I turned 13 years of age, I realized that playing all day with little time for home responsibilities and studies was one of the bad choices I’d made. Then, one fine day, Grandma (or as we fondly called her, “Mai”) asked me to accompany her to buy groceries from the market, including some meat and fish. She started introducing me to all the vendors and said that I will come next time to make purchases. I resisted and she explained to me that it was time to slow down and start focusing on my life. She said time is running away and if I didn’t change my path, the road ahead would be extremely difficult.

A few days later, she sent me to purchase some groceries and, as usual, I started wandering around playing with neighborhood friends while she was patiently waiting for me. An hour later, she came searching for me and shouted at me in front of my friends. I was embarrassed and apologized to her.

I held her hands gently and said, “I promise to be a different person but you have to be patient with me.”

Then, she explained to me that time does not wait for anybody. She said that my habit of procrastinating was detrimental to my future. She decided to share an example and said,” You know that we cook meat once a week?”

I replied, “Yes.”

She proposed a hypothetical situation, “How would you feel if I told you that I would cook meat on Sunday and then, I would keep postponing every week, would you believe me anymore?”

I said, “No and I will get fed up and not ask you again.”

She said, “Well then, in a similar way how can I believe you, if you just keep reassuring me and then take no action?

I nodded, as I understood what she was trying to teach me and that I had to earn her trust back through my next steps. Then, Mai held me gently close to her and further explained that every time I decide to postpone, I would lose precious time and in essence, a missed opportunity. She ended the conversation by saying that instead of procrastinating for tomorrow; I should learn to take one step at a time and only then; I would help achieve better results in life.

CA/GL-06/24/18

Please share with your families and friends