Column 15 – Safe Places become Black Holes by The FlyLady, Marla Cilley

Did you ever put something in a safe place never to find it again? I have many times. It is almost a joke in our home when I say those black hole fateful words, “I need to put this in a safe place. There are car titles that have been lost in the vastness of my safe places. One time I was flying across the country I lost two items all because I didn’t want to misplace them on the flight.

We could have been the three stooges searching for the cord to Michele’s headphones. You know the story. I put them some place safe and then had to spend thirty minutes searching through every pocket and compartment in my purse and my computer bag. After I finally found them; I lost the cord to my headphones. Luckily that cord had not been placed in a safe place; it was hiding on the floor under my foot.

In order to get myself calmed down from the chaotic start to our plane ride I put on some music that settles my nerves and decided to write about our little comedy routine. Why do we put ourselves though this. At one point I was so happy that my sweet darling was not with us on our trip. When he does travel with us; he likes to sit a few rows away from us because I fidget too much. He travels light. This is not a term that sidetracked people are familiar with. Light for us is a flash light to look into that bottomless pit of a handbag to help us find what we are searching for.

I have been trying to figure out what the difference is between a man and a woman traveling. Robert has his wallet, a comb, his glasses, a book and just a car key in his pocket. His bags can be packed in about five minutes. He carries the bare necessities unlike Michele and I. We are prepared for anything. We have medications for stomach aches, heat pads for sore muscles and pills for headaches. We have our computers so we can still work and we have our tunes so we can sing. This stuff has come in handy, but the price we pay for having too much stuff is in time and frustration. Yes we know it is here someplace.

The same thing happens in our homes when we have too much stuff. We can’t find what we need when we need it. We don’t have homes for these items. As my Granny has always said, “Everything has a place and everything in its place”. Can you imagine this??

For sidetracked people our clutter is clogging up the valuable storage space in our homes and the stuff we need is homeless. This is why we are always searching and wasting time hunting for what we want. With less clutter we release the frustration that comes with losing items. The funny part is that the items that are usually right in front of our faces in plain view and our frustration level blinds us.

My next trip I am determined to travel with less and find more peace in my journey. I can do this. Are you ready to join me by releasing your clutter.

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