Spring Cleaning

I know that I am not alone when I say that I am not a fan of extreme cleaning. Perhaps many of you reading are also tired of constantly battling the second law of thermodynamics when it comes to keeping your home-room-etc neat and tidy.  No matter how often or diligently we clean everything manages to get messy again doesn't it?! Its an eternal battle that never ends! Because of this I have developed the unfortunate tendency to drag my feet with the never ending task and have become comfortable with a system of organized chaos.

However my negative view of cleaning was altered this week while reading a passage in Paulo Coelho's novel "The Witch of Portobello;" a book I would highly recommend to anyone. In this particular passage a character, Edda takes a rather sunny view on the simple task of washing dishes.  Edda says:

"When you are washing up, be thankful that there are plates to be washed; that means there was food, that you fed someone, that you've lavished care on one or more people, that you cooked and laid the table. Imagine the millions of people that have absolutely nothing to wash up and no one for whom to lay the table."

This idea can definitely be applied to more than just washing up. It is wonderful that I have a home and a place to clean.  Even though constantly having to clean up can be a pain, it is a sign that people are present in and enjoy my home. As a playground of some of life's fondest memories, it is only natural that a home requires an investment of our time and energy for maintenance.

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