Maybe You Could Write a List

In my eternal quest to eliminate the word "should" from my vocabulary I call out to my son "Maybe you could write a list" when he tells me of all the things he needs. It's a brilliant idea, list making and I want to increase the likelihood that it will happen.

The reason I so despise the word "should" is that it is full of shame. Really, it's a shortened version of "I could... but if I don't, shame on me." As I recently read, a little shame is good, it keeps us in line, but too much is ruinous, really ruinous. Perhaps you've heard the phrase "Stop 'shoulding' yourself." Well "Stop 'shoulding'" is going to be my tag line for 2010 because whether it's backwards or forwards, for me or for you, the 'shoulds' just don't amount to anything useful. I'd like a kinder, gentler word for the things I'd like to accomplish this year, this day. I'm thinking 'mayhaps' might be it. A shortened version of "maybe I will do.... but if I don't, there's always tomorrow."