In the world of computers, there’s a function called “Undo.” It’s literally what it sounds like- you can undo your last change or even the last few changes of a document or file you’re working on.
It’s a fabulous way to fix a mistake or to return to a previous state simply because you changed your mind.
Do you ever wish that life had an undo function? Wouldn’t it be handy to just take back that stupid thing you said or to clean up the egg you dropped on the floor?
I make plenty of mistakes and often say dumb things so it would get a workout in this house.
Yesterday I was staring at my newly-decorated-for-Christmas fireplace mantle and I was sure it could be better. I had combined two simple pine garlands, adding some ornaments, ribbon and pine cones before weaving in some twinkle lights as an afterthought.
Wrong order but it still looked nice enough. Yet I couldn’t leave well enough alone.
That’s mainly because I had hit a great sale at Joann Fabrics the night before and came home with ribbon that would look better than what I had used. Plus, I have this neat garland of pretty silver bells on a rustic jute rope that needed a home and would look great woven into the pine!
Hot diggity! I had a plan!
So I dropped what I was doing, dismantled the perfectly good thing that was done and set about making it “better.”
Hindsight is 20/20 and it is now clear that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, pretty ribbons and bells on jute.
I placed the pine garland, woven with perfectly spaced twinkle lights before setting my sights on those pretty little bells. I figured out how to attach the rope to one end of the pine, immediately sending that half and it’s share of thoughtfully placed lights to the floor.
Huh. This would be harder than I thought.
So I fixed the lights and pine and took another run at it, this time being careful to place the weight of the bells toward the top and back. This sent the entire thing to the floor, leaving the mantle bare.
I will spare you the full story of how many times this didn’t work. Suffice it to say my mind got stuck on an annoying loop of wishing I could just undo the last ten moves. The bells are currently in a pile on the floor as I’m far too disgusted to look at them.
Meanwhile, I put the pine, lights and adornments back to the best of my ability, looping in the new ribbon to add some nice muted color and texture.
And now, as I step back and admire my handiwork, it is clear that I liked it better the other way.
Seriously, friends. Where is that Undo button when you really need it?
