Article 18

By Dawn Brookshire, Home, Garden & Design Editor

Chances are good you know one, or know someone who knows one. Perhaps you are one (as am I…too-much-percent of the time): a neatnik (also known as one who’s “compulsively neat”, or, just plain “mad.” Really. If you don’t believe me, just check Webster’s Dictionary). Many neatniks this time of year are sorting, boxing, labeling and scrubbing their way to a “Spring clean” sparkle that’s enough to incite momentary bouts of jealousy and guilt in even the most level-headed among us (which, sadly, I’m not all of the time, either).

Yep, it’s spring; along with which comes the inevitable pressure to get your house in order, your ducks in a row. Can’t you just picture it? The perfectly-organized…everything! Well, this year I’m going to take a little advice of my own. I once wrote to a younger cousin of mine who was errantly following in my Type-A footsteps, “All your ducks will never be in a row, so stop trying – there will always be a crazy, curious, lost one, two or three that’ll mess up your ‘plans’…the sooner you’re okay with the ‘messiness,’ the better off, saner and happier you’ll be.”

Flying in the face of studies that suggest spring cleaning is a better pick-me-up than Prozac, I’m grasping a reality of my own: nothing’s perfect (also written to my cousin, “Perfection is God’s job, not yours – nothing will ever be perfect. Accept that early, and enjoy life more.”). Life is messy. Accepting these facts will surely go a whole lot further than any dose of Prozac will. Remember the “Serenity Prayer”: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.”

The sooner I let go and accept that my house isn’t always going to be in order (or a Real Simple cover story, for that matter), with my ducks in a row, and that my loved ones won’t judge me for what it is, or not (my perception of their ideals being really just my own), the saner, happier, more care-free I’ll be. As will my husband, dog, family and friends.

No more nagging my husband because his standards aren’t mine. I’ll take an afternoon bike ride despite a closet that’s not clean.

No more finger-wagging at the dog because her shedding won’t stop. We’ll spend an evening at the dog park in spite of hairballs gathering under the hutch.

No more missing family gatherings because I’m overwhelmed by the mess. Instead there’ll be relationships built, good times had, and precious memories made.

Believe me (and here, I admonish myself as much as you), there’s time for everything else later. There’s always going to be something to keep you from the good things; don’t let cleaning your house be one of them.

So, for all those out there who are harried or frenzied or just don’t like to clean, this is a “get-out-of-jail-free” card of sorts: Don’t (succumb to spring cleaning, that is). And don’t only don’t, don’t and don’t feel bad about it either. Time not spent cleaning, can be very well spent. Grab a friend and go for a walk. That’s going to be a whole lot more edifying than cleaning out a closet full of last-year’s-size-clothes. Hit an early evening matinee with a friend or your spouse. That’s way more uplifting than cleaning junk from a drawer.

If, for some reason, you just can’t let it go (which, despite what I’ve written above, still might be me), how ‘bout just pick out a project, or two…maybe three…but forget the massive job that’s come to be known as “Spring cleaning.” Make it about that one thing you can do, rather than the ten you can’t – even if it’s just wiping down a cabinet or two. Do that enough times, and you may just back your way into that oh-so-coveted “Spring clean sparkle” (though maybe sometime in the Fall). When you’re living life to its fullest and embracing all the opportunities before you, well, there’s nothing wrong with later, is there.

Written by Dawn Brookshire, who’s learning, slowly, but surely, that life’s about a lot more than a perfectly organized, sparkling house. SMM

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