Show Stopper

While doing my morning walk on the treadmill (an absolute must if recovering from back surgery) I like to listen to podcasts. Well, there was one that I heard this week that almost stopped me in my tracks!
The podcast was from Focus on the Family, July 31, 2009, Coping as a Messie.
At WayPoint we are putting together another Wise Woman Workshop (seminars we put on quarterly where women from our church share their wisdom and expertise about a variety of issues). This month's workshop is on Household Organization.

I was blissfully walking along until I realized that this podcast was made for me! It is no secret or surprise that my house is a mess most of time. Since having children, my husband and I have tried very hard to get it under control. Various factors were working against us.... I am sick a lot, we had two children in close succession, breastfeeding, back surgery, no storage space or garage, small house... and the list goes on.
About four months after back surgery I felt like Sleeping Beauty must have felt waking up after a 100 years and looking at the mess the castle had become. I had so many helpers, but everyone put things in different places. The girls had outgrown clothes, summer clothes needed put away. A lot of stuff had come in, and nothing had gone out. Meanwhile, I was just recovering from surgery... not a lot could be done, at least not very quickly.
So, I  had already begun the slow process of sorting after surgery. However,  a revolutionary thing had come out of my surgery... a shed in which to walk on the treadmill...and storage! (Thank you to the many men who helped build the shed to make this possible for me) Having storage has greatly improved our living situation.
I digress... I was walking along on the treadmill in my miracle shed and I realized that beyond the circumstances that contributed to my house being a disaster most of the time... I was in fact a Messie person! According to Sandra Felton, people who have Messie houses usually have certain temperaments and tendencies that contribute to the sorry state of their houses.
Sandra Felton founder of Messie's Antonymous was discussing with Dr. Dobson about the characteristics of a Messie. I could not help but recognize myself in the description. My Messie tendencies in combination with our circumstances and my poor health were a bad combination. Out of this podcast I feel like God is beginning to teach me how to deal, and help my family deal with the ups and downs of my health. I work hard to get the house somewhat under control, then I am down-and-out for a week or two and the house gets completely out of control. Then I get better and have to work hard to get the house back to almost under control. In reality I can't get past the clutter to do any actual cleaning. This has caused me so much frustration, but I haven't known any other way to get past it! And round and round I go!
The ephiphany was that if I get the house under control, it will take less work and energy for me to maintain. I would love to get past just dealing with clutter day in and day out, and actually get to cleaning the house. In the podcast Sandra Felton was very positive and practical. She gave me a few simple solutions to get me started that I already put into practice that have made a big difference.
A second thought that occurred to me is that it will be easier to ask someone or pay someone to come and help out when I am sick or going through down times. People can come in and clean, but they can't really sort through your clutter. Then when I am better I won't have so much catching up to do. I am praying that we can end that cycle, and Rory and I can feel like we are moving forward rather then always trying to break through the clutter.

So... I ordered a few of her books with some Christmas money. I am excited to begin this journey from a Messie to a Cleanie. Change is hard, but so is living in a mess all the time!