“Do you feel obligated to do certain things such as clean the house, etc. when you have company coming over?”
A few hours ago, I was having a conversation with Nicole Ash, and this topic was brought up.
As she shared her own experience of cleaning the house moments before company arrives, even though she might have already cleaned it a few days before or will have to clean again after the company leaves, I couldn’t help but think of the things I do before I have company over.
I, too, clean the house pretty extensively.
I vacuum not once, but twice sometimes.
I scrub every surface in the house including those that I don’t even see myself ... EVER 😂
Seriously, how often does a guest look inside the balcony closet?
The more I think about it, the more I begin to realize that I clean not necessarily due to an obligation, but rather I believe it’s a reflection of who I believe I am at the core.
Cleanliness to me represents a sense of structure or organization.
That sense of organization then transforms into other activities I engage in over the course of the day.
How I form thoughts, interact with people, look at my day, etc.
The act of cleaning has also become my form of therapy.
It has created a time and a space for me to focus solely on the task at hand without the interruption of the thousands of other thoughts.
Now, I have also noticed (slight tangent, so please stay with me) as I was reflecting on the cleaning process and realize that depending on the guest, determines the way I clean.
Some with whom I have a great degree of trust, I feel comfortable with simply picking up around the house rather than scrubbing each surface.
But, that’s a topic for another conversation.
As you think about the different things that you do prior to having company, why do you do them? What do those activities say about who you are if anything?
