I became a stay at home Mom and evolved into a house-cleaning fanatic/perfectionist. It wasn't so practical but I put my heart and soul into my homemaking. I would block my housework into days and do it when Jesse slept because otherwise I was entertaining him, and not quit until it was finished. My house was almost always clean and nary a foot would enter my home unless it practically sparkled. It was still satisfying just more constant and bereft of awesome loud music. After my second child, my house was no longer always clean, but I still wouldn't let anyone in without embarrassment unless it was. I also felt frustrated that I couldn't get it clean and it wasn't as satisfying...more "exhausting". And finally after my third child I evolved again to what I am now. I work hard at keeping my house tidy and organized but it is rarely clean. I clean the kitchen after every meal, tidy up a bit and sweep every day, do laundry twice a week (always); clean the bathrooms and wash the sheets weekly (most of the time), vacuum and wash the floors every couple of weeks (sometimes). My house is still generally a mess and I don't care and I especially don't care who sees it. I haven't washed the baseboards in years. Dusting? Who dusts??? Most of the time it's not very satisfying because cleaning is always something I do while I'm doing something else, such as helping with homework or making a snack or holding a child, and it happens in between stuff like running out the door to pick someone up or remembering to make a phone call. Maybe it would be more fun if I could still pump the music and dance away with no distraction. But I stil do it. A lot. It takes up a huge portion of my day to day life! And then one day someone I admire said to me:
"A clean house is a sign of an empty life."
An empty life. *Sigh* Perhaps, yes. But I love my home to be clean and organized. I love it more than a lot of things. It gives me peace of mind. It makes me feel like everything's under control and my family and I can relax.
If nothing else, I hope I'm creating a home where the lives of my family can be full to the brim.
Next step in the evolution: Empty out those kids' lives a bit and teach them to clean up after themselves because I'm sick of picking up after people all day.
Yes, this brings back a lot of housework memories from when my kids were young. I know every time I've been in your house, your home only has "daily" mess - stuff that happens every day like toys and crumbs from the latest meal and so on. Underneath all that is a clean, organized and healthy home.
ReplyDeleteI once heard that saying, too, that a clean house is indicative of an empty life. That is simply not true, in my opinion. My life has been anything but empty, but I've always felt that a basically clean home was the building block upon which I stacked my other accomplishments. You can't enjoy life if you can't find anything because your cupboards and closets are a mess. You can't have the peace of mind to create anything if you know your kids don't have clean clothes or you have nothing in the fridge for snack time. In fact, the very organizational skills and discipline that allowed me to write novels actually began as I disciplined myself to run a home. Sister Julie Beck said that all the housework and laundry counts as good mothering work. And you, Sarah, do great mothering work!