Limits on Caring

I'm afraid I no longer have the time or energy to care/worry about everything that the news & my life toss my way. I'm having to make some hard choices (samples shown below.)

In the In-Box (some engraved, some on sticky notes):

1. Safety of nephew headed for Iraq.
2. Izzy doing well in the new job (my Mom prays for his safety on the bike each AM.)
3. Izzy's next younger brother (chronic Hep C, congestive heart failure, addiction, etc.)
4. Safety and health of both of our extended families.
5. Strength for those caring for their chronically ill children.
6. God's clear guidance for those discerning vocations.
7. Intentions of North Korea and Iran for their nuclear arsenals.
8. Counting carb and protein grams and then waiting to see (via blood test results) if I made the right choices.
9. How my boys will do this season.
10. Whether or not I'll get to the flu shot clinic in Florence by 6:45 AM tomorrow.

In the Out-Box:

1. Foley-gate. Bad, yes, but I just don't have time anymore.
2. SSPX schism w/Rome. Don't quite understand all that led to the current state of affairs, don't have time to learn everyone's viewpoint. Same for rad-trad Catholics.
3. People put out about musical stylings and choices at Mass. Yes, chant should have pride of place and we need to improve the participation of the laity and avoid songs with heretical content. It's just that there's no time to worry about that while trying to assure that what we sing each week is appropriate, worshipful, well-played and not a hindrance to focusing on God. Besides, it's just too reminiscent of the Protestant "Worship Wars" to invest the energy again.
4. Ecclesiastical politics (talk to me sometime about chairing a Presbyterian pastoral nominating committee.)
5. Most SC Politics, even though I serve in the Executive Branch.
6. Celebrity couplings.
7. Madonna's adventures in adoption.
8. McDreamy, McSteamy, McAdulterer, etc. Sorry, GA quit being a medical show.
9. Whether or not I can come up with two more out-box items
10. so that it'll be a top 10.

In neither box:

1. Pandemic influenza. Half my work-life gets spent preparing for this. It becomes less scary with increased familiarity.

Now they are saying Castro is dying (or might have died, or maybe not)--gotta decide into what box to put this rumor. Tomorrow ... off to bed now.