Dear Friends,

Today we are spending time with friends and family celebrating Thanksgiving. Let’s think about this for a few minutes. We were all taught in elementary school about the pilgrims and the Indians. They came together with what they had and enjoyed each others company. I guess you could say it was the original pot luck.

We are very blessed with a great abundance of things in our lives. You know the bumper sticker; Who ever dies with the most toys wins. Well no one ever wins when they are surrounded by clutter; except clutter. Clutter steals our money, our time,  our love, our space and our peace! WHY do we allow clutter to rob us???

We all have enough and then we surround ourselves with clutter; we make lots of excuses. I have heard them all; because I have said them to myself for many years.

For years I was unable to pass up a yard sale; there may be something I could use and it was a BARGAIN! Yea Right!!! All I was really doing was escaping the clutter so I didn’t have to look or deal with it. So I would spend just a few dollars here and there to accumulate more stuff that was just like the other stuff I had stashed in every drawer, closet and shelf in our home. When I looked in my kitchen I had several pans of the same size and lots of kitchen gadgets. What was I thinking? These things had made my kitchen almost impossible to use. The sad part was; I didn’t know it.

We have been trying to fix ourselves for years by buying every self-help book on the market. When I started getting my home organized in January of 1999; I started small with one habit at a time. Here is the funny part. I had no clue what I was doing was going to work so I continued to buy these self-help books. I knew something was wrong with me. I just wanted to find that magic pill that was going to FIX me! I had not realized that clutter and my holding on to things was the problem until I was blessed by listening two a couple of books on tape.

What I have come to know is that all parts of our lives are connected; messy home, messy finances, unorganized schedule, relationship problems, discipline problems with our children and our health. When we start getting only one area straightened up then the rest seems to get better. You all came to FlyLady looking to get your home in order. That is exactly what I wanted; just to get my home organized. I never dreamed that other things would change too. The magic pill if there is one was me; my attitude. By listening to Suze Orman in her book; The Courage To Be Rich; I realized that clutter and my holding on to things was a major part of my problem. One day I hope to thank her in person for her guidance. I found her book because I wanted to learn more about investing and taking care of our finances; never in a million years did I think that finances and household clutter were connected.

We hold on to things because of a lack of faith in ourselves. We fool ourselves into thinking it is because we are frugal and want to save money, but in the end the depression mentality has co-opted a new generation. So we hoard things and as a result our homes become giant junk drawers. We can’t find anything even if we were to need it. This junk takes over the useful storage spaces in our home and our stuff is left out in the open for the world to see and to create CHAOS in our lives. Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome alienates us from our friends and family.

With no clear surfaces in our home we search for peace anyplace we can find it. We head out to the malls, we cruise the streets for yard sales or we spend hours at Wally World (Walmart) all to escape our junk drawer lives. What happens then is we buy more junk and continue to pile on! Piling on only creates avalanches. Eventually it will all fall down and you will be under it suffocating.

How do we stop this? By being Thankful for what we have and Giving away our abundance. The more you bless others the more blessings you will receive. This is what Suze taught me: Give it away and it will come back 10 fold: Not in more stuff either. This is a lesson I have heard all my life in Sunday school but it never hit home till I found out that my clutter was hurting me because I was hoarding and not blessing others with my excess. Have you ever noticed that older homes have no closets to amount to anything; that is because they did not hold on to stuff. They only had what they needed. When you get rid of your clutter; you will find that your home has become more spacious. You won’t need all of those storage containers or pretty silk boxes for storing stuff, because you won’t have anything to store, since you will be loving and using everything you have in your home.

On this day of Thanksgiving Day let us commit to blessing others with our abundance. We have a cornucopia overflowing and it is our homes! Release the clutter and find the true meaning of peace in your life. Let there be peace on Earth and let it begin with me. The first step is the hardest! Once you start blessing others the feeling is contagious and you will be looking for ways to continually bless people with what you have. It may be your time, your talents, or more stuff; it doesn’t matter start by clearing out your clutter and then you will see blessing overflowing your life. This is what happened to me. I would have never been able to be FlyLady with my clutter holding me back. It was only after I released it that I found my voice!

Actions speak louder than words: It is one thing to say you are thankful but blessing others shows that you really are!

Are you ready to bless the world with your abundance?

FlyLady

P.S. If you would like a scripture for Thanks-Giving check out Luke 6:38.

We have everything you need to keep your home shining! Sometimes we need a little motivation. Our efficient tools give us a jump start! They make a tough job fun. If you make it fun; it will get done!

FlyLady here; Holiday Cruising Missions have started . Go download your free Holiday Control Journal.