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| Sort and Organize |
Someone once noted
that during the first 50 years of our life we go about acquiring things
and in the last 50 years of our life we will go about getting rid of our things! Hence
the importance of neighborhood garage/patio sales. Now, of course with this
pandemic, we may not be ready for such a “gathering” quite yet. However, since
we have the time, this is the best opportunity for clearing out, organizing,
and preparing for our next garage sale whenever that may come along.
Many single-again women have already tackled
a type of “environmental cleansing” simply because of the need to re-arrange living
situations. Maybe it was a move to a new house, renting out a room in the
present house, or finally getting around to discarding all the hoarding trash
that has collected over the years in every room of the house. It may not have
been something we desired to do at the time, but still, we were compelled to
face the idea of de-cluttering vs. getting buried in things and possessions
that only reminded us of a life we were trying to let go
of.
Talk About Dizziness!
Depending on how long it has been since
our marital status moved to a different column on our tax forms (divorced,
widowed, or single mom), it has changed us both on the inside as well as the
outside. We are not the same women we once were whether we recognize it or not.
And that may be the precise key to some strange feelings of woe—sadness,
heartbreak, worry, and gloom—that attack us now and then. We just are not the
same and we are having trouble admitting that fact. We have shifted 180
degrees, but our heads are lagging. Talk about dizziness!
It’s possible we may be trying to fight
what’s going on inside instead of “going with the flow” and finding peace. Our
life has changed and is anxious to get on with the business of living while at
the same time, we are stuck in “quicksand.” Life itself is still moving faster
than ever and, true, time is not going to wait for us. It’s a matter of trying
to discover who we are and what we really need now.
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| Blogging is a home-based business |
If that familiar “Aha” moment is knocking
at the door, that’s a great sign. Deep inside we all wish for the absolute best
to happen now that we are on our own. Of course, it will be different for each
one of us. For some who have lost jobs because of the pandemic, their top
priority is just to find a job to pay the bills and put food on the table. Or
figuring out the best way to homeschool the kids who cannot go back to classes
yet. Maybe it’s moving to a more economical home in a new neighborhood, maybe
even a neighboring state. Perhaps it’s starting a new home-based business we've
always wanted to open. These goals are all important for sure and we do need most
of them to survive. But on the other hand, we must not be “glued” to them but,
instead, understand that most will change over time. We may find an even better
job. The kids will go back to school eventually. We may move again at some
point. So, enjoy anything good that comes along, but don't count them as a
forever thing.
Finding the Recipe for Peace
Just like all that clutter we want to get
rid of in our next garage sale, we will be more content and peaceful if we
continue the process of cleaning out the junk both in our homes and in our
minds. Figure out what is important to keep and dump the rest. Hint: if we
keep looking for empty boxes to store it all away (and never use it again), we
don’t need it! [Okay, maybe the annual holiday decorations can stay...insert Smile here].
We can only use so much “stuff” in our lives, so keep sorting, donating, and dumping
until a new feeling of happiness invades our very existence! Strive for less
chaos and disarray (some call this minimalism) to make room for
peace, joy, and pure contentment. These are the things that will last forever,
and we can't have too many of
them!
An amazing man named Paul once said,
“I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as
happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for
being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have,
wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One [God] who makes me who
I am” (Philippians 4:12-13 MSG).
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