It's a beautiful Saturday here in New Jersey. Birds are actually singing again after a long winter. Trees are waking up and showing off their newest buds. The lawn is perky and glimmering with a 7am dew.

All of this ought to be enough to put on in a "right mindset" for praying. Is that you? Or, are you a person who hits the morning with a thousand ideas going through your head?

I tend to be the latter, distracted the moment I wake up and preoccupied by the oncoming stress of the day. Not even Saturdays are immune from this interior tension.

When you are bothered and unable to pray, clear your head. Write down what's going on in your noggin and name it for what it is: mental stuff. Get it out of your head and into whatever system you use.

Today I'm looking out at the yard and all of the Spring cleaning that is waiting for me. It will have to wait a bit longer I'm afraid. I plan to write it down and then enjoy some prayer.

Clean out the shrub beds- will do.

Rake the lawn- sure.

Buy the mulch- ok.

But not yet. Now I'm ready to pray. The work can wait.