“Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” - William Morris

My Easter was spent with my hubby doing a bathroom renovation. Oh, the cathartic pleasure of smashing tiles with a jemmy! Hard yakka but the effort was well worth it. I am still not bored with the thrill of yet another proud peek EVERYTIME I pass by the bathroom!

When we pulled out the old bath it was like uncovering an archaeological site. A mound of sand, a school of plastic scuba diver toys, a big hole in the wall, a curiously neat pile of stone fruit seeds, lots of mammal poo, (sorry Rattus rattus who lost her home), copious dust and filth… All underneath us for years, in our primary place of personal cleanliness. YUK!

The change has made a massive difference to the energy of our home and got me thinking about how transformative it is to shift old rubbish.

Attacking the bathroom is a major event but there are lots of constant, small irritants that annoy us and are easy to do something about. Things like: the crumbs building up in your toaster, the rear vision mirror getting loose in your car, or the growing pile of papers sitting next to the computer. Every time you experience the “loose rear vision mirror” it gets up your nose. It takes your time and energy to stop & think “oh, I should get it fixed” or “I should take that pile of old clothes to the op shop” or “I should read those emails…”

These constant irritants wear you down, clutter up your mind and reinforce any negative beliefs that you have about being unorganised, lazy, too busy, unworthy... So the question is what are you tolerating that drives you nuts?

“Men trip not on mountains, they stumble on stones”
– Chinese Proverb

When you stop putting up with and ignoring these things you have less to complain about, are less grumpy, apologise less and are nicer to be around. Shifting stagnant, dead energy makes space for something new to happen and clears your vision. Physical clutter equals mental clutter, which in turn affects your overall wellbeing. What can you change? Can you clean it, fix it, throw it out, give it away…? What could you do that means you will never waste your energy thinking about it again? Even if it is, “it is not possible or important for me to change this now so I accept it….”

Next time you do your housework have a go at the following cleaning and clearing ritual which is an effective way to get the old and unwanted energies out of your home. (And I reckon anything that makes housework more interesting is welcome!)

Housework Clearing Ritual:

•    First tidy & de-clutter.

•    Clean from room to room in a circular direction around the house. Choose to move in either a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction. If you move in a clockwise direction you focus on bringing in light and new positive energy. If you move in an anti-clockwise direction you focus on removing and banishing the dirt.

•    When you have finished your cleaning open all your doors and windows. Move around your house in an anti-clockwise direction making lots of loud noise. That’s right, sing, laugh, do your best Gandalf the Grey “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” impersonation, clap your hands, ring a bell, bang a drum, stamp your feet. Whatever takes your fancy as long as you do it with strong, clear intention. Imagine that you are literally banishing unwanted visitors!

•    Enjoy the clear, open, lightness and remember:

“Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it”
- Salvador Dali