KEEP IT SIMPLE
I guess it’s the control thing in me, a need for complete order in my emotional hoarding mindset, that makes me pick up the tub of Clorox wipes and pull out the vacuum cleaner.
It’s what I do when there are a thousand other things that are way more important, but I can’t seem to focus on any of them. Yet, cleaning puts me in that very same place, simple intentions of order, turn into a list of “must do’s” that include organizing toys from the 1980's and sweeping out the barn.
I am a list person. Years ago, my “to do” list secretly slipped away from me and slid under the fridge. I tore the house apart in a “mama meltdown,” upsetting my kids and bothering my husband at work, convinced that he had thrown it out.
Three decades later, two grown kids, and one new husband...here’s my updated plan: Keep it simple.
Make a daily to do list of two productive, manageable things, such as:
Today, I will write one paragraph about one thing I fear.
Today, I will write one paragraph about one thing I am grateful for.
Do it. Then throw the damn list away.
STOP COMPARING
One day a friend came for coffee. It was during my children’s nap time. Just before she arrived, I ran through the house like a crazy lady making sure everything looked perfect. No dishes in the sink, no toys on the floor, nothing out of place.
Ah, perfect, I thought.
But when she stepped into my living room, the first thing she said was, “Wow, it looks like no one lives here.”
I wasn’t sure if it was a compliment or a criticism. Again, three decades later, I can still clearly remember that day, and I’m still confused about what she actually meant.
Make a personal mantra. Tape it to your bathroom mirror. Speak the words aloud, such as:
Today, I will strive for awareness.
Today, I will recognize that there is no need to compare, criticize, or seek control of things in my life that do not create peace in my day.
Do it. Then don’t beat yourself up tomorrow just because you didn’t do it perfectly.
LET GO OF IT
Then came moving day. The cellar was packed with soggy cardboard boxes of toys, a playpen with ripped padding, and cataloged containers of every school paper my two kids had ever brought home.
“Let go of it, Mom. While you are stuck in the past, holding on to us as babies, another decade will go by.”
That day I detoxed more than just the cellar. It was time for a new paradigm, and while I was trying to get a grip on that newness, I cried all the way to the dump and back.
Today, my house is never in complete order, and I love that now. We live here. And, there are more important things to do.
Bring awareness to every day.
Today, I will let go of things that no longer serve me.
Today, I will invite high vibrations of newness and wonder into my life, and I will celebrate the detox of my emotional hoard.
Do it. Start with this powerful reminder to yourself.
I am brave enough to begin.