Surf’s Up!

Surf’s Up!

It was early September and the very first day of school. My son gave me a big hug and went out the front door.  I watched him walk down the block to meet two of his friends, big smiles on all of their faces.  Ahhh…summer was over and I was finally home alone!

It was time for me to begin my day’s work.  I sat at my desk and focused on a few writing projects that had deadlines coming up.  Unfortunately I wasn’t feeling very productive.  I wondered how I was going to get into a groove when…. slowly but certainly, something came over me.

Was it the smell of the cool autumn air? Or was it because socks had found their way onto my feet for the first time in months?  All I knew was that I had no power over the urge that was arising within me as my home called out loud and clear “today is the day that you are going to begin fall house cleaning!”

Fall housecleaning? I didn’t even know I did fall housecleaning!  I know I am compelled at times to go deep into the depths of my home but honestly I’m not aware of seasonal compulsions.  Who am I kidding? I will use ANY excuse to clean…bad mood, good mood, tired, angry, company on the way and even the weather are all perfect excuses to clean house.  Never mind that I use most of the same excuses not to clean.

But that day, as my son went off to school and autumn filled the air, my newly socked feet were as good an excuse as any.

Then the big question…where should I begin? I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that when I asked that question overwhelm struck immediately.  I was instantly lost in the abyss of, “there’s way too much to do here, I can’t possibly tackle all of this”.  My impulse to clean was dangerously close to grinding to a halt when I remembered my gem of an ebook, “Five Simple Practices to Create Peace in Your Home”.

I closed my eyes and put my hand in and pulled out ‘Promote Peace’ and I followed my own advice and promoted peace room by room. I set my timer for 5 minutes and promoted peace in my kitchen.  I set my timer for another 5 minutes and promoted peace in my living room. It was so much fun!  After I’d done 5 minutes in each room, I did another round of 10 minutes in each room.  Before I reveal what happened next I will offer this disclaimer, “don’t try this at (your) home!”.  I moved into a very advanced house cleaning technique as I let go of the structure altogether and free formed it. I let myself go from here to there all willy-nilly and loved every minute of it.

The surf was up and once I got past the fear there was no stopping me from riding the wave.  The energy that filled my body was extraordinary.  Those few hours of focused housecleaning completely transformed my home and me too. After I was finished, I settled into a very productive session of writing.

On that early autumn day I was brave enough to follow an impulse, smart enough to support it with some clear structure and kind enough to let myself enjoy the ride until the wave broke peacefully on the shore.

When was the last time you had the impulse to clean house? What structures do you rely on so that you are successful in following through? How do you feel afterwards?
Email me at jovanna@yourwelcomehome.ca .  I’d love to hear your stories!