The cleanse

(No, this isn't about some super-powered seaweed kale smoothie with an extra scoop of whatever pretentious  trendy food is popular this month.)

I spent an entire day cleaning out my old closet at my parents' place. Yes, it was an all day event. To give you an idea, I found a brand new VCR still in the box, my 3rd grade backpack with a broken zipper, my old ballet shoes, love notes from a boyfriend from about a decade ago, index cards from a history exam from freshman year of college...I could go on. Every time I thought I was making progress, all I had to do was look a few inches over and another pile of lordknowswhat sat there, waiting for me to pick through it. It was funny. It was exasperating. It was the perfect picture of my life these days. I'm sure you can relate, yeah?

My closet was the prime example of neglect, of letting things sit there and fester until they grew into a forest. It never seems that bad in the moment, just stick this here, put that there, I'll take care of it later etc. If you're like me, "later" can mean anything from 15 minutes to 15 years.

Man, have things festered.

I'd allowed chaos to become the norm. I'd worn blinders to keep myself from seeing the clutter around me, which enabled me to ignore it altogether. Of course, this only made it worse. I tried pouring gallons of water into an already full 12 ounce glass.

Take your time. Clean the closet, one corner at a time. Empty the glass carefully, into another forgotten glass, into a spare glass offered by a loved one, down the damn drain if need be. The clutter won't instantly vanish. The water may splash up or spill over a little. That's what trash bags and towels are for. Do not let yourself be buried alive. Do not let yourself drown.