May you enjoy the advent of the holidays, put on the flash, take control and compromise as needed – make someone happy, be it you, someone else, or better still, BOTH!
Grant me a sense of humor, Lord, then the saving grace to see a joke, to win some happiness from life, and pass it on to other folk.
Earlier this week, PattiAnn longed for a clean house – and then set about reclaiming control. I certainly can relate to that! Used to be, when I traveled three weeks out of four, I found myself itching to clean the kitchen even before I’d unpacked my bags. And my sister-in-law, after a dream trip with her husband to Italy, vacuumed the entire downstairs within 30 minutes of her return!
Taking Back the House
We all have our weaknesses. And, somehow, “taking back the house” is one that we women succumb to despite our seeming liberation from all things domestic. Once upon a time I read a treatise on Why Jenny Can’t Lead… it was a parody on Why Johnny Can’t Read and its premise, as I recall, rightly or wrongly, was that women lacking any other domain of control, surrendered their leadership inclinations in favor of controlling hearth and home. Well, I never did really get that premise.
But I do think there’s just a satisfaction that comes from finally exercising some modicum of control over our environment. And Lord knows, it’s ephemeral, this feeling of control. I mean, beds were meant to be slept in, dishes to serve food, clothes to wear. And, subsequently, they all need some sort of handling. Over and over and over again. If we’re lucky, we have somebodies to help with the responsibilities. But, in the end, it appears that beyond retail therapy there is cleaning therapy as explained on MakeitandMendit.com:
Cleaning is the new therapy. Psychologists have found that there is a marked difference in mood before and after doing cleaning, just as with a therapy session. …Research maintains that a clean house makes people feel happy, satisfied, comfortable and healthy.
And when I ruminated about Putting on the Christmas Flash this week, I suppose some part of me was simply attempting to claim control over all the holiday folderol… while celebrating and appreciating the first of this season’s generous gifts given by my grandson and nephew. Even as I gloried in our weekend accomplishments putting on the flash, I put on the Grinch and grumbled about work, work, work, and spending opportunity, spending opportunity… But lest we see the Grinch as just a grump, I propose that you get out your virtual crayons and have some fun with the Grinch Coloring Book.
It appears that I’m not alone in my ambiguous feelings about the advent of the holidays. PattiAnn struggles with finding the warm feelings that supposedly epitomize other people’s holiday experiences. She proposed that a big component of giving is being willing to compromise, to sacrifice and do what you would rather not, so that someone else is happy. Just in case you’re drawing a blank page when it comes to gifting ideas, ZenHabits.net offers us 32 Ways to Make Someone Happy. Here are a few:
- Tell a joke and laugh your butts off.
- Clean.
- Give them a cherished book.
- Bake cookies.
- Praise them publicly.
- Thank them for a job well done.
- Listen.
- Be there when they’re in need.
- Give a free hug.
And, speaking of compromise and sacrifice, take a few moments to watch this video from ResponsibilityProject.com. Home Run is a true story about responsibility, choice and pulling a win/win out of a lose/lose. Although it’s long, it’s worth the watch during this season of sharing and giving.
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