Being an introvert, I need some quiet time on a regular basis to recharge my batteries. My kids don't know from quiet. My younger two are so extroverted that they practically have others orbiting them on a regular basis. Little Brother, in particular, needs near-constant company. And when his friends are here and it's quiet, that's usually not a good thing either.
Between the radio (loud enough to be heard throughout the house), the TV (at a competing decibel level) and the general kid chatter--or bickering--I feel like I'm being assaulted by noise constantly.
I'm not getting to daily Mass like I'd like to (and like I do on average of 4 days a week during the school year), and that doesn't help. It's hard to listen to my favorite radio show, The Catholics Next Door, because I don't want to add one more sound source to the sensory overload I'm experiencing. It's like the lyrics from that Harry Nilsson song, "Everybody's Talkin' at Me."
And when everyone's outside, I relish the silence for as long as I can get it.
At Catholicmom.com, Sarah Reinhard brought up the topic of summer parenting. I mentioned in the comments that with my desk in the middle of the house, in the living room, I run into a lot of sound overload (and a lot of interruptions.) I've been contemplating a way to find some space elsewhere in the house where I can work in quiet.
This afternoon, I got it all figured out and Middle Sister did the heavy moving. I've got a bookcase full of books emptied out all over the bed, so I have to get those put away, but there's a small desk in my room near a window that has a backyard view. It's not going to be my primary work space. But when things get Just Too Loud here in the heart of my home, it's good to know that I've got a spot where I can (temporarily) retreat.
I can run, but I can't hide. I can't stay up there all day, tempting though it may be. That won't do my family any good. Besides, I'm not so sure I want to be working in the same room where I sleep. We'll see how it goes. If nothing else, I'll have sorted through all these books--and that's not a bad thing either.
1 comment:
Sometimes I find quiet time by taking the dog for a walk early in the morning. Yes, there are some sounds, such as the singing of the birds, but there's enough quiet and aloneness for me to recharge my introvert batteries.
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