Picture: Lakshmi-goddess of prosperity (materially and spiritually)
An aspirant was telling me about their struggles to organize and get things in order. This is something I have also had a great desire to master in this lifetime. It seems to be an ever elusive goal. I know that it is both a skill set and it has many mental and emotional layers to it as well. During our time of talking we made an agreement with each other to set a goal for March 31st to have our houses in order, as well as living wills and last wills.
When you set a clear goal and ask God for His assistance then it is amazing how help comes in so many unexpected and delightful ways. Carla came across a book, The life-changing magic of tidying up, by Marie Kondo. We decided to make a study of this book, and if it made sense then to put it to work. As Marie points out we are trained in so many things in life, but how to tidy up and organize our home is not one of them; we are just supposed to know how.
Our abundance in life produces great challenges for us. For many of us starvation is not the problem, it is to discover the right foods and the right amounts of food. It is not the lack of information, but it is choosing what information we take in so that we are not swimming in too much of it. And the amount of books, papers, clothes and general stuff we have can create a state of clutter that can become chaotic, frustrating and inefficient; it also blunts appreciation and joy in having those things. Learning to manage abundance is one of the great modern privileges we have.
Marie Kondo has made a lifetime study of organizing and being tidy. An unusual child, she would rush home from school to devour a new magazine on home decor, always with an eye toward efficiency articles. While somewhat obsessive in the preoccupation she devised schemes and tried out many methods. What balanced her in her drive was her focus on what things gave her joy to have in her home.
It is this theme of finding joy and happiness in things you have when organizing and tidying your home that makes all the difference in her approach. By taking a complete category, such as all your tops (shirts, sweatshirts, sweaters, etc.) and laying them all out, then handling each one and asking yourself, “Does this give me joy?” You keep only those things that give you joy and discard the rest. What you end up with in the end is being surrounded by only those things that bring you joy.
She even has methods for how to fold your clothes, she is Japanese after all (the land of origami), and you think, “Oh I don’t know about that.” Then you try it, and lo and behold it works! The first category was strangely hard to do. But since then this feeling of joy in choosing and organizing has become contagious, and I find now that I want more of it. And, in the end, who does not want more joy?