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| CARING FOR YOURSELF |
What do you do to show others that you love them? Now, what do you do to show you that you love you? Chances are that you treat yourself very differently.
If you were a guest at someone's home would you leave everything lying around? Not put things away? Again, chances are that you would make some effort to put things back and be at least somewhat neat. Now, is this the way you treat your own home? How you treat yourself? I personally would never have treated another person's home the way I have treated mine over the years.
It took me a long time to realize that treating my home the way I did was a show of disrespect … to myself. Strangely, it wasn't until I had begun making small changes in my life, timidly dabbing on self-esteem like it were a rare perfume, that I finally began to see that clutter was a symptom of my poor care of self and also a contributor to the same thing. It was also trying to serve as a warning, a wake up call.
Look around you! You are smothering. I'll keep piling it on until you realize the life you are living amounts to suffocating. I was suffocating because I didn't show myself that I cared.
What is the clutter in your home saying to you? About you? Do you have the subtle belief that you don't deserve to be cared for? If you are struggling with clutter, make sure you are taking time out for yourself. Time to unwind.
Before you pick up another piece of clutter or clean the sink, do one loving thing for yourself. Write yourself a thank you note for the things you do or about the things you like about yourself. Take a cup of tea/coffee and go outside, sipping the liquid as you enjoy the air. Give yourself a facial, a mud mask or such. Whatever you choose. Something loving.
Consider what makes you feel good. Try a little pampering. Taking a long, hot bubble bath is one of my favorite ways to take care of myself. Then when you are relaxed and open minded, think of what would make your home seem like a sanctuary to you. Make a list. Then take action.
Start with just one room, such as your bedroom, or even just one corner of a room. Now that you have begun showing love to yourself, see the connection between loving yourself and giving yourself a comforting, welcoming home.
One reason I think I had long been against housekeeping, is that I believed the only reason to do it was for its own sake only. Now I see it as a way of caring for me. It's a way of saying to myself, "I do this because I love you." It is creating a place for me that is a haven. I now am more willing to make my home more manageable and nicer looking in order to care for me.
Remember, at this point you aren't doing this for others. This is just for you. Your own personal sanctuary. A place of your own. A place free of clutter, but with the things you love, that make you feel loved.
After you have experienced and immersed yourself in having a little section of your home be a sanctuary for you, then you can begin making the rest of your home a welcome place for not only you, but your loved ones as well.
As I become more important to me, caring for my home becomes more important to me. Reducing the clutter, doing the dishes and laundry, becoming organized is a way of caring for me and my home. We are intertwined. My home is an expression of myself. It is a soul-friendship in my life. My loving, nurturing companion. When I come home, I can be embraced in its comfort. It is my friend. It is an expression of love. And as such, I strive to make it clutter free.
By Sharon Crosby
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