[2022-07-09] Simplifying as a form of self-care
My latest hobby—as you can probably tell from recent posts (Cleaning and mental health, Household chores schedule, Kitchen floor)—is cleaning and organizing my house. These activities may not sound like a hobby, but if "A hobby is an activity you may complete in your free time that brings you pleasure," then cleaning and organizing fit the bill. In fact, more than a hobby, they are a form of self-care. As blogger and "slow coach" Emma Scheib says, "Having a simplified, uncluttered home is a form of self-care."
To me, organizing a closet, cleaning a drawer or washing my fridge absolutely feels like taking care of myself. First, there is the satisfaction of solving a puzzle of what goes best where. Second, there is the gratification of knowing what I have and being able to find it when I need it. As my daughter says, organizing is the gift that keeps on giving. And as a friend said to me recently, organizing her home made her feel safe, particularly when a family member would look for something and she knew exactly where to find it.
Today, I tackled a pile of gift-wrapping paraphernalia: gift bags, tissue paper, boxes, ribbons, bows. These items were semi-organized in several bags at the bottom of my closet, but the system I had in place was neither efficient nor optimized. So this afternoon, I pulled all related items out of the closet, laid them out on the bed and conceived a new organizing structure.
First, I started with a couple of large apple boxes from Costco. They are sturdy, stackable and lightweight—perfect for storing stuff in a closet. In fact, it was my husband's desire to get the empty apple boxes out of the garage that motivated today's activity.
I divided my gift-wrapping items into two boxes: one pertaining to Christmas and one pertaining to all other occasions. As much as possible, I stacked items vertically (think files in a filing cabinet) rather than horizontally (think a pile of files on your desk). This included gift bags, organized by size, and tissue paper, organized by colour. The beauty of the vertical-stacking approach, which I picked up from organizing expert Marie Kondo, is that I can see all items at a glance and can choose the one I want rather than having to disturb an entire stack of items. I put unstackable items (such as ribbons and bows) in paper bags (the kind of sturdy paper bag you get when you buy something from a fancy shop) and placed the bags inside the boxes.
The result is better than I had anticipated: I now have two beautifully organized boxes of gift-wrapping materials, no more clutter at the bottom of my closet, and a happy husband who has reclaimed space in the garage for his things. More importantly, I have the short-term satisfaction of a few hours of self-care and the long-term benefit of a well-organized system.
