Situation: My neighbor, Emily, is a wonderful housekeeper! It is a pleasure to visit her well-organized house. Since nearly all her and her family's possessions have their own places of storage, after something is used, it is returned to its place. The whole house is spic and span, no dust, no trash. How does Emily accomplish this marvelous feat, with a husband, several children and a big, hairy, always shedding dog?
For one thing, Emily feels that a clean, clutter-free house will be healthy, physically and mentally, for herself and her family. Another reason she tries so hard is that she feels that the self-discipline it requires for both herself and her husband will lead to good habits and eventual self-discipline in their children. Plus, they are nearly always ready for guests.
Emily knows that the secret of a clean house is to stay on top of things and to do a little bit each and every day. The biggest problem is the pet hair, but a quick vacuum every day takes care of that. Another problem is the accumulation of dishes in the sink. She prefers to load the dishwasher herself so it will carry the maximum load. But the family cooperates in bringing their dishes to the sink.
Another secret of Emily's is good time management. Long ago, she realized that shopping took up an enormous amount of her time, not to mention gasoline, which seemed to get more expensive every year. She plans her shopping for one evening every week; there are few extra trips for necessities. She will buy essentials in large quantities, when they are on sale, both to save money and to have a stock at home. This helps everyone think ahead to decide on what will be needed for the following week. Emily says "no" to frivolous and most last-minute requests.
Emily in no way considers herself the "maid" of the family. She and Greg, her husband, talked about this before their marriage. Each person is responsible for picking up after himself or herself. Emily made a game of this when the children were pre-schoolers, now no one even thinks of it. The whole family helps with meal preparation and clean-up. Since there are after-school activities most days of the week, meals are simple but nutritionally balanced.
Cleanliness is next to 'godliness,' so the old saying goes. This is only one example of trying to behave in an upright, virtuous manner, pleasing God. Could there be a 'down side' to cleanliness? Yes! If you drive everyone in your life batty picking up after them, this is not good!
In my family, two of the girls (except for the oldest) and the two boys shared rooms. It always happened that of each of the two, one was a 'clean monger' and the other was a slob. You can guess where this led: near constant fights! "Mom, she won't pick up her dirty clothes!" "Mom, he threw his dirty clothes and trash under his bed!" It was kind of interesting what happened when they grew up: the ones who complained the most had the most problems keeping a neat house.
It takes some thought and planning to achieve a mostly neat and uncluttered home. Part of it involves being choosy about what items you will buy and bring home. I try to think: "Do I need this? Will I have to dust it?" My house definitely needs improvement in this area!
Lord God, you know all our shortcomings. Help us to be patient with ourselves and always try to improve, just a little bit, every day!
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