I love my mom, and she is an awesome woman - but oh my goodness this woman can not sit still for more than three minutes without finding something else to do, organize, clean, move, straighten up, etc. You know how some smells take you back to your childhood and sweet memories... well - the smell of Mr. Clean, Comet and Clorox take me back to Saturday mornings.
Saturday mornings wasn't a day where we could wake up late or stay in bed and watch Saturday morning cartoons. (Gosh I just got a whiff of Windex)
My mom would wake us up make us breakfast and all of a sudden you would hear the sound of running water - ughhhh. Time to sweep the floor - and not just sweep the floor, we had to make sure we were putting muscle into it, making sure we got it out of the crevices. Then came mopping and dusting and fixing the beds... helping out in the bathroom, the living room. She would even spray the windex on the paper towel, I guess she knew the perfect amount of sprays and paper towels needed to get that sparkling shine.
I think this is one of the reasons why she loves to visit my sister Marlene... Marlene doesn't mind or has gotten used to my mom's cleaning nuttiness - so my mom takes joy in going over and cleaning EVERYTHING from top to bottom over and over again. I on the other hand get uncomfortable... Not that my home is dirty - but I guess that in watching her go 100 miles in hour cleaning and organizing and moving stuff around, it makes me feel inadequate... maybe even like I might be letting her down. So I've prohibited her from cleaning and even that is uncomfortable because I feel I'm robbing her of her passion or joy or wanting to help me out.
Right now at home its only my mom and dad. But she still hasn't stopped. Last week I was joking with her about her cleaning obsession and I told her she had to take it easy because her shoulders hurt from time to time when she does too much. And it was funny and I guess a little sad listening to her response because I realized that she wasn't the same woman from back then, she was getting older. She said that her mind wants to climb up and scrub the walls and the windows and move furniture around and splash water all over the place - but her body isn't what it used to be and while her brain wants to get up and go, her body is moving a little slower and she doesn't have the strength to do what she wants to do.
I, unfortunately, did not inherit this gene. I am a hoarder and love clutter. Something that truly did not exist in my home. But I love it lol. I believe part of me is rebelling the whole cleaning I had to do. I instead prefer to hang out with the kids or my hubby and watch tv. As wonderful as that may be - I think I am talking talking talking and my kids are seeing something totally different. So its time to talk the talk and walk that walk. I can't expect something from my kids, if they don't see it in me. I'm being hypocritical and these are things I don't want to pass down or qualities I want to teach. So bring on the Mr. Clean, the Comet and the Clorox - its a new year. There is something beautiful and refreshing in having a clean home. Gotta go do the laundry now.
