Getting Organized

I have been sitting at home today trying to get organized, which I must say is a difficult thing to do. I went through a “junk drawer,” which in American culture is the drawer that everything gets thrown into and eventually it looks like a tornado hit it, at least mine did. I did things like put all of my rubber bands in a bag, put all of my batteries together, and I recycled small plastic containers. Doesn’t this sound like an awesome way to spend the day?

Now it may sound simplistic, but there is something about getting organized that makes me feel more productive in general. I have been looking at files and thinking about future lesson plans for my students, making phone calls, setting up appointments, making to do lists and even crossing some items off that list.  Now, you might be asking, “She was able to get all of that from organizing a junk drawer?” I guess my answer is, "Well, yes!"  The junk drawer was the beginning of what has spiraled into a full-blown reorganization project for my whole life.

I should say that as if a whole life redo isn’t enough, I have another reason for spending the day organizing. My parents are coming for the holidays. They live out of state and will be staying for a week. I am excited to have them here. In terms of mess vs neatness, however, I often feel like my adult house looks far worse than my teenage bedroom ever did, and this makes their visit a little stressful. By spending the day organizing, I am making it far easier on myself to get some cleaning done over the weekend. It is nice to feel productive and it is also nice to live without clutter. I have assembled a bag of things to donate to charity, some other items I would like to sell, and I have even assembled a pile of things I can use in the classroom. I love getting organized. I love the way I feel right now.  I hope it lasts. Now that is the real trick.