In the end, I joined in, helping Eli to scatter blocks across the carpet. It's part of a new thing that I'm practicing—not treating organized as a “must have.”
Organized can get in the way of things. Like when you want to scatter blocks.
(Or when you want to try something new. Or be authentic. Or enjoy the moment.)
Don't get me wrong—I love my organized bookshelves (sorted first by color then by genre, thankyouverymuch). Organization has its place and can be fun.
But happiness can be messy.
- Dr. Sarah Glova, Co-Editor of 8&21 and Recovering Perfectionist
The mess just is
“But the idea that happiness comes from putting effort toward altering one’s circumstances is harmful and backward.
What if we instead learned to understand that circumstances can rarely be controlled, and that life is, and always will be, messy?”
- Cy Wakeman, drama researcher, international leadership speaker, and author of Life's Messy, Live Happy: Things Don't Have to be Perfect for You to be Content.
Happy first, dishes later
When I'm done, the kitchen is a mess. But, I love cooking.
The process makes me happy and enjoying the meal with
family and friends makes me happy.
The messiness is just part of my process. I’m not worried about how many spoons I used—they will get cleaned up AFTER we enjoy eating the meal.
- Dr. Sarah Egan Warren, Co-Editor of 8&21 and Embracer of Recipe Messes
Happy in the messy
“A clean and organized home can indeed make life easier and bring us satisfaction, but it’s not likely to be the key to a happy life.
If it feels good to clean, clean. If it helps you get a project started or gives you a little more time to procrastinate, great.
But spending too much time imagining the happiness you could feel in a clean house might just deny you the time you could be happy in a messy one.”
- Lee Breslouer in “Can you be happy and messy at the same time?”
Messy, ephemeral happiness
“One of the great misconceptions human beings have about happiness is our implicit belief that things (objects, but also experiences) will always make you happy – satisfaction guaranteed.
Sometimes they can.
In the end, happiness is an ephemeral phenomenon. It comes and goes, sometimes stimulated by the things outside us, sometimes just by our own thoughts and perceptions.”
From “Happiness is a messy thing” by Jasper Bergink
Great job!
Way to take a pause and give 3 minutes to your practice of pursuing awesome
with this issue's theme. You rock!
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