Wabi-Sabi #4
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4. Cultivate Cleanliness. An ancient tea master described wabi-sabi as “putting one’s whole heart to cleaning and repeating it several times.” Every time we sweep, dust or wash, we’re creating clean, sacred space.
To be honest, I've kind of been dragging my feet about this one. I'm not the cleanest person in the world. I'm not the dirtiest either, thank goodness, but I'm not one of these people who has every sock exactly in the right place in my drawers. Sometimes I don't do laundry for weeks. That laundry is frequently strewn around my room. I almost never make my bed. Only when people are coming over. The bathroom... that's by far the worst.
Okay, please excuse the interruption. I'll take a minute here to write about the earthquake that just happened, while I was writing this. When the computer screen started shaking, I thought to myself, big truck passing. But then I realized the entire house was shaking and the chiming clocks downstairs were ringing. Huh, I thought to myself, maybe it's an earthquake. And then it didn't stop. I was still confused about what was happening, though an earthquake was really the only logical explanation. I remember thinking to myself, If I were from California, there wouldn't be any doubt in my mind that this was an earthquake. Instead, I'm from Pennsylvania, so I'm walking around confused. Why is the house shaking? How is this possible? And then, it got even worse. Like the books started to slide off the shelf (they're laying on top of each other, so nothing too surprising) and my mom has a little picture of a fox in a frame that fell off the wall on top of them. I instinctively moved to the middle of the room. But then there was a ceiling fan above my head. Huh. Probably not the best idea. I wandered out into the hallway, bewildered. What is one supposed to do in an earthquake? I have no idea. And then it slowed down. And then it stopped.
In my usual fashion, I wandered around helplessly for a moment or two before calling mom and dad. They're the only people within an hour of here that I know, so I figured I'd call them. Neither answered. And then the phone lines became totally tied up. Thank goodness for facebook! Everyone started posting immediately and I figured out that everyone up the entire East Coast felt the earthquake, and that it originated in Virginia. It seems like Nina felt it in West Virginia (in a very old warehouse, unfortunately), but the people outside didn't feel it there, and in Pittsburgh, Brad (who informed me that you're supposed to get into a doorway, or get out of the building altogether) felt it on the 4th floor, but the people on the 1st and 2nd floors didn't. So there you have it, a blow by blow retelling of the greatest day of my life. I feel a little light headed. I didn't know this was a side effect, though I guess if I get dizzy after going on ferris wheels, this is not that surprising. I feel a poem coming.
Anyway, this post was totally hijacked! So I'm not the neatest person in the world. But maybe part of that is all the stuff I have. Like the books on the shelf. There are too many to fit on the shelves, so they're piled on top. Hmmm. This could probably change. How about a little simplicity in one's life? How about open, clean spaces, so the next time an earthquake hits, it'll be less devastation? ;-) Food for thought.
To be honest, I've kind of been dragging my feet about this one. I'm not the cleanest person in the world. I'm not the dirtiest either, thank goodness, but I'm not one of these people who has every sock exactly in the right place in my drawers. Sometimes I don't do laundry for weeks. That laundry is frequently strewn around my room. I almost never make my bed. Only when people are coming over. The bathroom... that's by far the worst.
Okay, please excuse the interruption. I'll take a minute here to write about the earthquake that just happened, while I was writing this. When the computer screen started shaking, I thought to myself, big truck passing. But then I realized the entire house was shaking and the chiming clocks downstairs were ringing. Huh, I thought to myself, maybe it's an earthquake. And then it didn't stop. I was still confused about what was happening, though an earthquake was really the only logical explanation. I remember thinking to myself, If I were from California, there wouldn't be any doubt in my mind that this was an earthquake. Instead, I'm from Pennsylvania, so I'm walking around confused. Why is the house shaking? How is this possible? And then, it got even worse. Like the books started to slide off the shelf (they're laying on top of each other, so nothing too surprising) and my mom has a little picture of a fox in a frame that fell off the wall on top of them. I instinctively moved to the middle of the room. But then there was a ceiling fan above my head. Huh. Probably not the best idea. I wandered out into the hallway, bewildered. What is one supposed to do in an earthquake? I have no idea. And then it slowed down. And then it stopped.
In my usual fashion, I wandered around helplessly for a moment or two before calling mom and dad. They're the only people within an hour of here that I know, so I figured I'd call them. Neither answered. And then the phone lines became totally tied up. Thank goodness for facebook! Everyone started posting immediately and I figured out that everyone up the entire East Coast felt the earthquake, and that it originated in Virginia. It seems like Nina felt it in West Virginia (in a very old warehouse, unfortunately), but the people outside didn't feel it there, and in Pittsburgh, Brad (who informed me that you're supposed to get into a doorway, or get out of the building altogether) felt it on the 4th floor, but the people on the 1st and 2nd floors didn't. So there you have it, a blow by blow retelling of the greatest day of my life. I feel a little light headed. I didn't know this was a side effect, though I guess if I get dizzy after going on ferris wheels, this is not that surprising. I feel a poem coming.
Anyway, this post was totally hijacked! So I'm not the neatest person in the world. But maybe part of that is all the stuff I have. Like the books on the shelf. There are too many to fit on the shelves, so they're piled on top. Hmmm. This could probably change. How about a little simplicity in one's life? How about open, clean spaces, so the next time an earthquake hits, it'll be less devastation? ;-) Food for thought.
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I love how you describe the day of the earthquake as the greatest day of your life. I think some of the best days of my life revolve around unexpected events. I like how you connect the earthquake to cleanliness at the end. I'm thinking that if we are free of clutter, we have more room for pleasant surprises.
ReplyDeleteI was being facetious about it being the greatest day of my life! I was more making fun of the way that everyone (including me!) reacted. It was actually quite nauseating and disconcerting! I admit to really not liking it.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big fan of cleaning; but I like having things clean, so try and avoid messes. Not so easy with 3 kids!
ReplyDeleteI did read recently- that you SHOULDN'T get under a door or table in an earthquake! You should crouch beside a big heavy object (chair, table, couch, etc), as when the ceiling comes down it will rest on that object and not smash you. It was from an earthquake specialist/investigator- he said you might be smashed under the table, but not beside it. Hope you don't have another one to worry about, though. =)