Today I was giving my room a much needed cleaning. A very thorough cleaning. It wasn't long before I was reminded of why cleaning sucks.

For one, it's sometimes hard to determine if an item is for trash, or for reuse, or for keeps. Often, you can get stuck with all your items piling up in your "for keeps" pile, leaving you right where you started. You're put into a position where you're forced to decide: "Is this really for keeps? I mean, it is my first bouncy ball after all..."

Sometimes throwing out an item that means something to you feels like throwing out a part of yourself.

As you roll the ball through your fingers, hardened to a rock over the years likely due to oxidization, you ponder whether this item is really of matter to you... "No, it's of no matter. Because I no longer live in my past. I must make room for what's to come. It must be thrown out."

So, you toss the ball to your for trash pile, "Ah, that's one less item to deal with." when suddenly, a realization strikes you. It is my duty to clean, to make way for what's to come. For if not, I will be stuck in the past. This bouncy ball was a source of joy; now it's a fond memory. I have enjoyed it, so now it must be cleared to make way for the next bouncy ball that will come into my life.

The places I visit should be tidied up for the next visitors to enjoy. The forest fires that clear entire ecosystems allow a fresh start for new offspring. All these items in my "for recycle" pile will be pulverized into an unrecognizable form before they are formed into new items. My death will come to make way for my replacements.

So I shouldn't be sad that something is over, I should be happy that it happened. And I should be happy knowing that there will be much more to come. All I have to do to ensure the continuity of this is to

keep things clean.

"Cleaning" by Sasserisop (pseudonym)
Written May 22, 2023