Calendars

I know a lot of people who use their palm pilots thingies to keep track of their lives. A couple of friends use the big, thick, day planners to keep life on schedule. Some people really rely on their online calendars or ones that come with a certain email program. I have the PC(USA) calendar that runs from June to May. I've always found it funny that it runs from June to May but to be honest, I like it that way.

The whole calendar year thing has never really worked for me. My life has always revolved around the school year. Seriously, Papa Bear taught school for 30+ years, our lives revolved around the school year. Even when I was out of college and working at a bookstore, I didn't make the switch to thinking about the year in terms of January to December. It's always September through August...okay wait, September through June because really July and August are just free months!

Anyway, it's highly appropriate that I now use the PC(USA) calendar that runs from June to May because that is just how my brain works. Today, the brand new one arrived. It's so pretty, with nice boxes that tell me when important days are coming up...like the celebration of the Small Church Ministry Sunday. That's a big one around here. Seriously though, I love this calendar. I have very specific rules for my calendar as well. All appointments need to be written in, even if they are after the fact and any that didn't happen need to be erased...yes I said erased because no pen comes near this calendar. Everything is written in pencil. EVERYTHING! Writing in pen in calendars only leads to trouble. If you have to change something and it's in pen, then there's the whole crossing out thing, which just makes for a messy calendar. Pencil is the only way to go.

Getting a new calendar is just so fabulous. It's clean and pretty, with that new calendar smell. Nothing has been written in it, the days are free, so if I wanted to I could trick myself into thinking that I'm a lady of leisure with nothing on her calendar, able to laze in the sunshine with a good book and a Diet Pepsi for the whole month of June...except reality intrudes when my calendar from 2007-2008 peeks out from beneath the new calendar. June is filled to overflowing and though much Diet Pepsi will be flowing that whole lady of leisure thing won't be happening.

For awhile, I will gaze on the pages with nothing written in the little boxes of days and sigh in longing for those days of leisure but soon my hand will begin to twitch and I will not be able to stop myself from reaching for my pencil to begin transferring birthdays, anniversaries, appointments and details to my new calendar. For though I like the sight of a calendar with nothing on it, I really like seeing my days take shape and new year begin.