I Can See Clearly Now

I almost remember where my fingers fit on this keyboard…. I was logged on to my laptop last at Stacey’s in Tennessee on Saturday, December 17, 2022. The last time was last year! I could not get it to boot up at all once we arrived here in Florida. For the rest of the story about this, see the link at the end of this post.

John and I drove to Florida on Sunday, December 18 and spent a couple of nights with John’s brother, Jack, in Largo (near Tampa). On Tuesday morning, December 20, we arrived at our rental in Port Charlotte. Many of you have already heard that the house needed a LOT of detailing for me to get comfortable here. It was a VERY busy few days before Linda and Larry arrived late Friday afternoon.

Steven Covey spoke of effective life management as our putting in the big rocks first, then the small rocks, then the pebbles, then the sand. That way our life has room for EVERYTHING. As I was beginning this Yellow Brick Road post, I came across a thoughtful post about a flaw in that lesson. (Steven Covey’s Big Rocks First Strategy is Wrong; November 15, 2017 | Renée Fishman) Her essential message is what you leave out is space: space to breathe, space to relax, space to be.

For example, the big rocks of deep cleaning the kitchen had to be done before I was comfortable to cook and eat what was cooked! I am sooooo grateful John and I share a regular yoga practice and for my multiple “commitments” to meditation and mindfulness; and glad to have eased back into that regular practice now that the cleaning is done.

I have no way of knowing how much of the cleaning that was needed to be done was hurricane related. Obviously not all of it was, but some likely was. The windows were VERY dirty, including overspray from a probable recent painting, plus obvious hurricane contribution of vegetation and shards of plastic and glass jammed in the sills. Having lived with Johnny on the Spot Window Cleaning Service for decades, the condition of the windows was a big deal to both John and me. These would have been called “a full-scrape, inside and out” plus the windows are French style. LOTS of corners to clean. VERY labor intensive.

As I spent MANY hours cleaning these windows, I found myself slipping into subtle judgment of the condition of the house. It is quite an expensive rental (thus the need for our two households to combine for this season). I could send you photos of the condition of the kitchen, but that seems unkind. I am sharing only because the lessons learned here are significant for us all.

Noticing my mind whirring about the unacceptability of the lack of cleanliness, the voice inside my head says, “Cleaning up your own messes does not clear karma.”

The voice went on, “And cleaning up messes that you did not make does not clear karma if you are doing it with resentment or frustration in your heart.”

And finally, “In fact, the resentment or frustration in your heart is generating negative karma for you….”

Wow.

And then came the greatest insight.

“You chose to come to this area, and you brought your window cleaning supplies, because you wanted to be of service to those who were impacted by the hurricane. This is your first person to serve….”

I was inside the house cleaning the dining room windows when the guy came to mow the lawn. He looked at me quite oddly and I said, “I know it is a bit unusual to see someone cleaning windows in a rental.”

He quickly responded, “I thought to myself that you must be related to Chris.”

Chris is the homeowner.

My heart was so opened by this comment. I could feel his effort to care for this home. The linens are good grade. The dishes are nicely appointed. There was obvious care in the choosing. I had appreciation for the home being made available flood in. I knew the concern and the expense and myriad other emotions around owning a home you plan to live in when you retire and needing to generate rental income to make all of that happen. The vulnerability of having someone in your home, using your stuff, doing God-knows-what settled in.

I am grateful Linda and Larry did not arrive until after the biggest rocks of detailing “our” home-away-from-home were done, but I am also grateful they were here to see the before-and-after of the window cleaning.

Window cleaning that has definitely let way more light in — far beyond the physical!

P.S. You can see the rest of the story about my computer repair and why the last time I posted a Yellow Brick Road was last year in the Sacred Story: Tarpon Technology Solutions.