Enjoy this guest blog from colleague Jennifer Hofmann, of http://www.InspiredHomeOffice.com
For one night
I’d just returned from visiting my family for the holidays when the taxi dropped me off at midnight. I stood at the back door in the dark, fumbling for my keys – and couldn’t find them. Stunned, I realized I’d locked my house key inside before I’d left for my trip. There I stood, exhausted from my travels, shivering in the cold, and unable to enter my own home.
This was back in the days before cell phones. I couldn’t call for help. I couldn’t call a locksmith. Being new to the neighborhood, I didn’t dare knock on a neighbor’s door at that hour. I eventually I found a payphone and called the police, but they wouldn’t agree to break into the house for me. I had stopped thinking rationally. I seriously considered breaking a window, but I was renting and couldn’t see explaining my actions to the owner (who was out of state for the week).
After about an hour or two,I remembered that the unattached garage was unlocked. I tell you, a garage never felt so welcoming. Fully clothed, I crawled into a sleeping bag, shed some tears of frustration and shame, and fell asleep.
When the sun rose, I was thinking more clearly. I made a few more payphone calls and then asked a neighbor if I could call a locksmith. Within 20 minutes, my problem was solved.
Lessons learned
Strategy. One of the lessons is an organizing rule: if it (whatever it is) happens once, chances are good that it will happen again. So plan for it. Within a day of my homelessness, I copied the house key and installed a sturdy outdoor lockbox. I’ll never have a repeat of this incident (knock wood). And the combination I used is intuitive — it’s the first thing that comes to mind when I stand in front of that box. No remembering required. No more sleeping in the garage.
Solidarity. Even though I had a home to go to, I felt solidarity with fellow human beings who make-do with less than a dry garage and a sleeping bag. In fact, on my way to the payphone that morning, I chatted with a homeless man. He gave me his sympathies for my hardship (?!) and I gave him the small amount of cash I had with me. It was one of those moments when you know, deep down, that the separateness of our fates is only an illusion. All our warm hearts beat together.
Simplicity. Last year I volunteered at a at-risk/homeless teen shelter and we held an event for the kids at Christmas. What made it worthwhile were their faces as they received needed items like warm coats, hair brushes, socks… things that most of us take for granted.
While physical objects are helpful, they don’t bring us happiness. What does bring us happiness is the sense of safety we feel in our world, the support to overcome tremendous odds, and the degree to which we claim our ability to choose.
The key
Being organized can create a sense of safety, but it can also put is in touch with the uncertainty of life when our systems fail. May we learn to embrace the blessings of both as we journey though life.
Jennifer Hofmann was not born organized. In fact, having ADD and a hummingbird personality meant she was surrounded by the clutter of projects she never finished and she struggled to keep up with everyday tasks. Using a few simple practices, Jennifer transformed her life and workspace. The clutter went away and she stays focused on tasks to completion.
Because Jennifer truly understands what it’s like to struggle with clutter, her clients love the deep compassion she brings to the organizing process. For the Inspired Home Office blog, newsletter and great resources, visit inspiredhomeoffice.com.