The Game Changer: Part 3 of a 6 part series

 “Clarity”

 

 (If you've just joined us, here are parts 1 and 2 to start you off:)  http://freddiesmom50x50.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-game-changer-part-1-of-6-part-series.html

http://freddiesmom50x50.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-game-changer-part-2-of-6-part-series.html 

By Monday, I managed an inner light set to Dimly Lit.  In order to survive this, I had to adjust to the new mindset: We are going to get our house ready to sell.  We will do everything to make it the most absolutely and perfectly clean, decluttered, repaired and well-staged dwelling.  I know that is a pretty tall order, but I embrace excess.  

And then we are going to keep it.

Yes!  You heard me correctly.  Get it ready to sell.  And then don’t sell it.  

Remember my prayer, “Please give me what I need and not what I want.”  Well, it arrived.   

I begrudgingly started to see this was what I needed, but I didn't like it very much.  And just when I thought I had been shown the entire lesson of the summer, the kind Man upstairs reminded me of a second lesson.  It was something I already knew: Your house and your body are actually related. 

I was given two lessons for the price of one.  How did I rate a double scoop?

So, about this 'house equals body' thing.  Kitchens are the heart and certain rooms can be the ‘head.’  The reason there is clutter is because there is a room that is the rear end, plugged up and constipated, stopping the flow and thus, in bad need of an enema.   For us, it is our garage.

I feel like weight loss is harder in a ‘full’ home because of the distractions and clutter and unfinished projects.  Like I said, I like my stuff and it all has a place in my house, but I have come to the conclusion that my family and I have a life that is now bigger than our home can contain. I need more room in my house, just like I need more room in my pants.  If I had more room, I could think and focus on my weight loss and health. My things are spilling out of my house, like my tummy is spilling out of my capris. 

I’m spending my time in all the wrong places; too much back tracking, too much holding on to thoughts and things. 

Is this why my weight loss has stalled out?  Is this why there has been no progress?

And ‘physical items’ were not the only clutter.  The other type of clutter was the outdated way we did things in our home.  It suddenly occurred to me it was time to rethink my phone, our house, how I do coffee, how I interact on email, where we watch movies as a family, where my daughter plays, the way we eat, do homework, where we do our projects, how we do our paperwork, manage our home, interact with the family, where I get dressed, how we prepare dinner, where my to-do lists go and how I will manage the pile of deadlines for my son getting ready for college next year.  Even the rooms where my kids sleep are no longer the right rooms. 

I wasn’t ready for this, but it was coming in loud and clear that we needed to revisit our systems and the way we did things and lived our lives.  They served us well in the past, but they just don’t serve us NOW.  We’ve changed. Our kids are changing, so why are we doing things the same?  Our current setup has not kept up with us. 

 

House, body, mind, clutter, weight.  All connected like the Olympic rings. I knew it in my head, and now I was seeing it with my very own eyes.   I knew it was great that I finally saw how much I needed this lesson, but I was filled with dread, because now it meant I actually had to take some action.

Bring it, I said, taking a deep breath. Let the brutality of July begin.  

(Click for Part 4 of 6:  http://freddiesmom50x50.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-game-changer-part-4-of-6-part-series.html)