Chalking Up My Circles of Life

     I know there is a God and I’m not Him, so why do I fret so much? Does my huffing and puffing solve the world’s problems and save the environment and keep the grass from dying from my neighbor’s dog pooping on it? I don’t think so.     
     So, with the “help” of my grandson Oak, I’m corralling my ever-expanding concerns through Stephen Covey’s book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.”     
     Covey says we each live in a large Circle of Concerns, things we care about or that affect us even though we have little or no control over them. Instead of being distracted by them, he encourages us to focus our energy in a smaller sphere within that, our Circle of Influence, where we can, perhaps, make a difference.     
     Good advice, but I’ve discovered two other spheres within my area of influence that I must ask hard questions about or I get into trouble:     
     * My Circle of Responsibility - am I fulfilling what I’m actually responsible for?        
     * My Circle of Capacity - am I exceeding the limits of my emotional and physical strength?     
     If I ignore these questions, I develop another set of circles - under my eyes - from my distracted striving. I tackle what’s not my own, and forget to show up for my own life.     
​     And that is a colossal waste.