Don’t Put It In Your Backpack

You know the feeling when a figurative weight is lifted off your shoulders? You can breathe easier and might even actually feel a little lighter. I love that feeling. Those moments where a stressor is removed or a solution arises that you had been praying for. This can be in big ways and small. We are all walking around with a certain amount of weight on our shoulders, some much heavier than others at certain points in life.

There is the stress that we cannot control and we have to remain in faith that God has a plan. But what about the weight we carry on our shoulders that we can control?

The other day my husband and I were talking about a small issue going on in our life. It’s not directly impacting us but we were both getting worked up about it. As we vented about the situation, I could feel that figurative weight start to build. I was allowing drama, negative thoughts and judgment to seep in. My husband was also allowing the same. I was about to continue on with opinions on the situation when I stopped myself. Instead, I blurted out-

“Don’t put it in your backpack.”

I have said this before so it wasn’t something that surprised my husband. He knows the backpack I am referring to is figurative and means don’t let it weigh you down. Whenever I say this, my mind always flashes in with a quick visual of Dora the Explorer and her backpack, boots and monkey friend. This of course makes me laugh which then always leads me to breathe and realize that the issue at hand is not something worth stressing over.

On this particular day, my husband and I agreed the that issue was not actually ours to worry about. Sure, we will probably still talk about our feelings around it and likely some frustration and concern will seep in at times. That is only because we are human. But it is not something we are going to allow to take up real estate in our figurative backpacks.

As moms, we constantly have a pretty full backpack. Some days the load might feel lighter and some days the heaviness of life might make it hard to even get out of bed. There are constantly things being put in and out of our backpacks. Quite like a literal diaper bag; I know we can all relate to that.

We don’t always have a choice of what weight is given to us. That is where we find strength in God and in community to help us lessen the load. But sometimes we do have a choice. Think about all the times you have gotten worked up over something small and meaningless. Or maybe it was something big but it wasn’t necessarily yours to be weighed down by. There is a difference between empathy, being there for a loved one and helping them through something versus allowing the entire problem to be stuffed into your backpack.

My daughter was telling me about some fourth-grade drama at school. Right as she finished telling me the tea of what was going on, she gave out a little giggle and said,

“I know and I will not be putting that into my backpack!”

“Good girl!” I told her as I laughed back. I then couldn’t help myself and reminded her to control only what she can control and that kindness will win.

My marriage of 14 years has not been without stressful seasons and my 12 years of motherhood has not been without feeling moments or days of defeat. In those times, my backpack was heavy. There are times in life we are going to be weighed down.

I believe that those moments or stretches of time where we are carrying a heavy load can actually help us recognize what belongs in our backpack and what doesn’t.

Maybe “don’t put it in your backpack” is the new version of “don’t cry over spilt milk” or “don’t sweat the small stuff”. But they all hold truth when it comes to thinking about helping ourselves when life becomes overwhelming.

When I have a particularly stressful day, I literally will take a few minutes and think about the other things taking up room in my backpack. Are there things I can remove now that I have another hurdle that likely will be adding weight to my shoulders?

Sometimes we let simple tasks pile up and we can easily knock them out. Recently for me, I was feeling weighed down by letting the planning of summer loom over me. I recognize summer is months away but camps fill up fast. I decided to sit down and take what I could from my backpack by putting together a draft plan for the summer. This included enrolling my youngest for a couple of the camps that recently opened for enrollment. I immediately felt a little lighter knowing I was taking something off of my plate.

The next time you find yourself overwhelmed by something that perhaps is not yours to worry about or could be easily solved, I would encourage you to tell yourself; don’t put it in your backpack!

Do you relate with the visual of a backpack and sometimes needing to remind ourselves that not everything can fit in it? We’d love to hear!