What to say when you can’t respond yet

I get texts from friends. I get Facebook messages. I get direct messages on Twitter. I get emails.

And sometimes I simply do not know how to respond.

These are not mean messages. They are often kind. “When’s a good time to get together?” “I hope you are doing well!” “Congratulations. I bet you are over the moon.”

However, as a words person, I need way more than 140 characters to respond. I need way more time than the two minutes I have while walking down the hallways. I need way more thinking space to figure out how to explain how I’m feeling.

And so, I often say nothing. And I leave my friends hanging.

The other day, I imagined using a response something like this:

I’ve not followed up on your text/notification/comment.

I am ignoring it, though I am not ignoring you. Not exactly.

At the moment, we are appreciating the introduction of a new family member, I am planning commitments for teaching and for a specific consulting project, and I am uncertain about the schedules for these. It means that I am uncertain about scheduling any new things.

I am scheduling for late February and early March. Thanks for your patience.

I haven’t used it yet. Not exactly. Though it’s possible that I will simply send some friends to this note.

I invite you to use it, too.