tax returns...

I’m sitting at my desk with music pumping, singing along... and surrounded by receipts.

My baby is safely napping upstairs and I’m getting as much done as I can before he wakes up & insists on playing with all my little bits of paper!

Since as long as I can remember I’ve held on to receipts.  EVERY one! This is the first time we’ve been asked to do tax returns & I wouldn’t have thought that keeping those receipts would have become so useful!

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not advocating hoarding and I certainly try hard not to hang onto things when my tendency is to not throw things out.

BUT this exercise is making me reflect on how many times in life we have to do something repetitively that we don’t see the fruits of till somewhere down the line.

For example…

Fitness.  You don’t get fit by going to the gym once.  It’s the regular, repetitive moments.  It’s carrying on when you can’t see the immediate benefits…

Cleaning the fish tank.  Changing water when it seems to still be clean stops it from getting dirty…

Eating a healthy breakfast instead of grabbing a buttery croissant…

Dusting... 

Reading your bible reading plan every day...

All the little things that don’t seem to be much at the time, add up to future benefits.

I’ve blogged before about valuing the little things as they make up the big things when all put together, but let me just encourage you, put the little things in place now at the beginning of 2012 that you will see the benefits of in 2013 and beyond.

When you can’t see the results immediately be encouraged, lift your head from the ‘now’ and remind yourself of this time next year.

You’ll be glad you did!