Something on your “to-do list” that never gets done.

Usually I give the big ignore to the blog prompts from WordPress. But this one caught my eye and made me pause in my tracks. Something on my “to-do list” that never gets done. Oh no! Oh no! Oh no! There it was, something that I had to do, but never did. It’s a good thing I was reminded of it, true enough, but then again, why, why, why, why was I reminded?!!!! Now I feel guilty all over again.

There certainly has been something on my to-do list for a very long time now. Not just days or months, but years… and umm, more years. It pops into my mind occasionally and then I solemnly promise myself to give it the attention and time it deserves. Right away, I tell myself, I am going to get to it right away without any delay. But soon other things butt in and this important thing I intended to get down to right away, vanishes. Poof!

What the heck! It’s not as if I don’t want to start on it and see it to its logical end. I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I sing in answer, taking a cue from ABBA. I mean it too. Sincerely. And yet, being the Jill of all trades and mistress of none, and also as someone with too many interests than she has time for, I tend to forget or conveniently ignore, this one thing that needs a huge chunk of my time, not to mention total focus.

This undone thing on my “to-do list” has been around for more than a decade. In the past people used to try and prod me into action to get it done. They were polite about it. My hesitation only made them more and more insistent. I MUST do it, they began saying. One went so far as to tell me that they’d remind me daily till I finally did it. I had to beg them (through gritted teeth) to not to overdo it as then it would mean putting me off it for life. Yup, I hate being told what to do. No surprises there.

Most of those who expected me to give it the priority it deserved waited around for a considerable time, impatiently tapping their foot to see results. Gradually they lost interest and moved away. I don’t blame them. One can’t expect people to wait around for other people forever. It’s my fault that they lost interest in a non-starter like me. But I will do it some day, people. I am sorry I disappointed you, people. But I will do it. Some day. Yes, some day you will find my book of short stories out there. It’s only a matter of time…. hopefully! 😉

©️ Shail Mohan 2024