And Henry David Thoreau
As we head into the hangover of our Christmas benders—that end of December walk of shame where we suddenly come eye to eye (and eye to thigh!) with the gluttony of the preceding year—we find ourselves looking to purge and organize. A rebirth or “do-over” of sorts. (This feeling is so predictable that the very advertisers who seduced us into our gluttonous ways are now selling us the tools to organize the crap they sold to us throughout the year.) But I digress.
I loved this article on housekeeping by author and visionary, Rebecca Walker. As someone who has struggled throughout the years with an unrelenting desire (and often lack of ability) to keep an organized home, I think Rebecca’s comments strike a perfect balance. Silly as it sounds, I need the order, the peace of mind, and the creative space that only a tidy desk, sink, and perfectly made bed can deliver. Although I certainly don’t want to spend my life cleaning, I also don’t want to spend it drowning in a mess.
And as I sit here buried in the Christmas aftermath of wrapping paper, boxes, bags, plastic packaging, ornaments, receipts, and way too many things…what I really want, is less.
The less crap I own, the less housekeeping needed…and the more time left to do all the neat things in life.
I love this passage from Henry David Thoreau’s Walden,
“I still find it better economy to retreat behind some curtain that nature has provided, than to add one single item to the details of housekeeping. A lady once offered me a mat, but as I had no room to spare within the house nor time to spare within or without to shake it, I declined it, preferring to wipe my feet on the sod before my door. It is best to avoid the beginnings of evil.”
Thank goodness that Henry David Thoreau, the man whose work inspired the likes of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., thought it a more prudent use of his time to observe, enjoy and write than to buy, manage and be weighed down by possessions.
I might keep my doormat, but the rest I’d gladly exchange for room to live.
Listen to Kathleen’s previous interview with Rebecca Walker
Rebecca’s latest book is Baby Love: Choosing Motherhood After a Lifetime of Ambivalence.
Send comments to Kathleen.
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