Recently, I have been struggling to find a way to re-establish the daily routine I'd had since just after the first lockdown occurred two years ago now. For the past few months, my activity has been replaced by a lot of sitting and not getting much else done. I've been trying to get to the Spring cleaning as well as some sorting and clearing of the cupboards and corners that seem to collect all manner of things <smile>. Surely there must be someone else sneaking things into the house -- not sure how I ended up with so much stuff. Well, maybe that isn't quite true. There are boxes that were shipped to me when my childhood home was sold and then the selected items from when I cleared out my mother's apartment. A small number of boxes have not been looked at in the intervening years -- too much emotional baggage there. I will attempt some of them, but know that there will be things that I can't address yet. But there are some things that I know I can manage.
So, here I find myself in the midst of avoidance behaviour -- a key way that I deal with anxiety. Not a productive coping strategy, but it has been my 'go to' for decades now. I have spoken to friends to state my intention to put out an extra bag of garbage or recycling each week. I've thought through some of the items that can be disposed of, recycled, or donated. Some of the hard work of sorting has been done in my head, and all I have to do is get my butt into the room and just do it. It will go quickly. Someone pointed out to me that getting momentum for an unpleasant task isn't easy. I noted that the intangible benefit of clearing a space isn't enough to get one moving either. So, it was my hope that stating my goal -- a measurable, achievable goal -- would provide the accountability that I need to get this thing started. I also hope that spending time each day doing some of this work will help me re-establish a daily rhythm. As the weather improves, my afternoon walks should be more doable, too. Getting out of the house to see the changes nature provides at this time of year can help manage stress, too. I also need to be kinder to myself and realize that while there are days when less is done, they are rarely totally void of some accomplishment -- such as the laundry backlog that I got through this week and the major cleaning and vacuuming done this week, too.
So -- after all this thinking about cleaning one song came to mind. It has a slight sarcastic tone to it -- from my perspective at least. The visual should bring a smile or at least a guffaw of some sort. It may also suggest that I get over myself and quit acting like a princess or something. <giggle> Keep safe. Enjoy!
Happy Working Song -- Amy Adams
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