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March 28 Move one small paperclip

PROMPT March 28th ▼

Write about something positive. What is something good that’s happened in your world recently? Share a smile, share a laugh, share a success

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You'd think these days of "shelter in place" would result in my house being super clean with all of the time on my hands to get things done. NOT!

I have regular cleaning routines and I am relatively clutter-free. But as the days of isolation drone on, I find myself in a kind of malaise with no need to rush to get anything done, or why does it have to get done? Yet still I make my "Today I will" list each morning. In my normal routine, I've never sweated getting everything done as long as something got done and I would celebrate the somethings. But getting "something done" is just ho-hum these days with no celebrations.

Several years ago I discovered online, "15 Minute Daily Decluttering Mission at Home Storage Solutions 101." Following it was amazing, I got rid of so much stuff, I became more organized and I created a cleaning and decluttering routine that has worked for me ever since. (You should know, for years I had a cleaning lady. So my home has always been relatively clean. But when I reduced my hours at the office I felt I had no excuse not to do my own cleaning and this program helped me get on track and sustain it. I also learned that cleaning ladies don't declutter, nor do they deep clean, they just keep the surface looking clean.) Anyway, that experience led me to Marie Kondo and then to "Year to Clear". YTC deals with emotions and getting rid of the clutter inside that prevents us from getting rid of the clutter in our home. I'm glad I discovered YTC last because I think I had long since dealt with the psychological stuff, I often thought it was bit of fluff. But, this program, like Marie Kondo enhanced what I had accomplished initially. It had catchy phrases like "move one paper clip at a time" (that flips through my head all of the time). It also provided great quotes like:

"Small, easily achievable goals - such as picking up and storing just one paper clip on a chronically messy desk - let you tiptoe right past the amygdala, keeping it asleep and unable to set off alarm bells. As your small steps continue and your cortex starts working, the brain begins to create "software" for your desired change, actually laying down new nerve pathways and building new habits."-Dr. Robert Maurer, One Small Step Can Change Your Life

"Still, what I want in my life is to be willing to be dazzled - to cast aside the weight of facts and maybe even to float a little above this difficult world. I want to believe I am looking into the white fire of a great mystery. I want to believe that the imperfections are nothing - that the light is everything - that it is more than the sum of each flawed blossom rising and fading. And I do."                                         -Mary Oliver, House of Light

and "The only thing that is real - and really juicy - is happening right this second." ~~Stephanie Vogt Year to Clear

So in my malaise, I have turned back to Year to Clear and I'm rereading my journal of 5 years ago, picking through my notes. Today the message was "Take one minute, look around you and put away one thing that appears out of place or belongs elsewhere." My one minute lasted 15 minutes which led to my messy desk being straightened and free of stuff that never belonged there, a sweater put away in the bedroom closet, my bed made, and the dishwasher emptied. Such small insignificant actions that in such a short time made my environment more comfortable. It got my morning started in a productive manner and I now feel unburdened by the mundane to move forward with my day. The malaise seems distant, I know it will be back but in the meantime, I will stay positive and celebrate moving that one paperclip.

one small paperclip
picked up and put away,
cause to celebrate
                   ~~jvg