I was scrolling through the internet recently looking for team building ideas for work and came across a fun made-up holiday that caught my eye. One I had never heard of before, but could definitely relate to and that was November 9 — Chaos Never Dies Day!
This one made me chuckle because as a parent, that is most certainly an accurate statement, and whoever made this holiday up was probably a parent. Later that same day, a parent shared her morning chaos story that involved stepping out of the house with no pants — she rolled with it like a good sport, and I laughed because we’ve all been there at some point. I remember those early infant days trying to balance work life, baby life, and breast-feeding life, where I once wore my dress inside-out to work.
What I learned after that moment is that we will continue to have these moments again and again and again because… chaos never dies!
I was intrigued. How does one celebrate this “Chaos” Day? Well, let’s keep scrolling the ‘net, I thought.
Chaos Never Dies Day is a way to encourage people to take time for themselves in a way that helps ease your stress for a moment and to pay tribute to the fact that chaos never goes away, it “never dies.” Ain’t that the truth. Embrace the crazy. Slow down for just a minute this day, take a deep breath, scream out said deep breath loudly, and even scream a good curse word or two as you exhale if that makes you feel better.
Read a book, take a bike ride, sit in silence peacefully alone as you have a cup of coffee in your favorite coffee mug. Drive with the windows down to enjoy the nice breeze, or go sit on the beach and listen to the waves. Take a quick moment to do something — anything that you enjoy — before your next set of chaotic events ensues.
There’s no way to avoid chaos; it’s simply built into our day-to-day routines. As moms, we’re the chaos coordinators. In fact, I even have a T-shirt that says so. I bet you have one, too. We wear it with pride!
Coordinating kids getting to and from multiple schools with multiple start times, sports practice, coming up with dinner ideas, planning vacations or forced family fun outings, making sure kids stay on track with their homework and school responsibilities, remembering what field trip is on what day and when they need the money by, the list goes on and on. The devil is in the details as they say, and let me tell you there are many details every day, and sometimes I forget things. Okay, a lot of times I forget things, and that only adds to the chaos. Got to love it!
This November 9, I want you to remember that it is Chaos Never Dies Day and take some time for yourself to do some of your favorite things, even if just for a moment. Take a quick pause during the day to slow down. Most of all I want you to remember that this is normal, and this is life in all its glorious unruliness. That chaos never goes away, and one day we might very well miss this beautiful chaos of parenting life that drives us each day. In fact, I know we will, as I have been told by parents of adult children.
So remember, it’s okay that you forgot pants — we’re not judging, we’re right there with you. If anyone does judge, they will have that ah-ha moment soon enough, don’t you worry. I promise.
Happy Chaos Never Dies Day, and friendly reminder, don’t forget your pants.
