In the spirit of transparency, let me share a quirky habit: I sometimes add already-completed tasks to my to-do lists for the sole purpose of experiencing the pleasure of crossing them off. There's something inherently satisfying about recognizing a completed task.
Check. Did that. Done. Mission accomplished!
Right now, as I'm in the thick of the 12th week of our 15-week semester, I have to-do lists in abundance: lists for work, lists for home, lists for the kids. The typical list-y stuff of life.
But, I'm also pleased that soon — very soon — I'll be able to cross out some big items from those lists. The most labor-intensive speech round for my classes? We're nearly finished. Give me one more day, and I'll have that unit's grading complete. The house rental season? With the majority of home football games behind us, I now can wash the rental linens and stow those supplies until they're needed next year. Yard maintenance as we head into winter? Most leaves have fallen, so the stage is set for one final raking and one final mowing.
Loose threads are coming together. To-do items are being checked off. Even when there's still a lot to do (as there often is), how satisfying it is to remember the things that already have been done and to commemorate the doing.
So, I'll write a list. I'll check off what I've accomplished. And as I place those checks, I'll celebrate the satisfaction of tasks completed.
