poetry month, yes, I’ve got that. And I HAVE been playing around with some poetry. But I’ve also been trying to make April Spring Cleaning Month. Which is harder. At least for me.
Here’s the thing: I stink at cleaning. It’s not just that I can’t sweep right; it’s that I have no idea how to organize things and put them away. So I pile. Sometimes the piles are neatish. Sometimes they’re Pisa-esque. But they’re always there. Stone Henge on my dresser and the counter and the hutch. The piles add clutter to my house and to my brain.
This month, a number of my friends have embarked on admirable art projects. My friend Mary (who hasn’t updated her blog in ages), is writing a poem a day. My friend Cece has been a maniac, completing an illustration a day based on the adjectives, colors and animal names she picks from a jar. (The snapping turtle is still my favorite, followed closely by her sad, musical possum.) And me? For my April project, I’m trying to cut down on the piles by throwing away 10 things a day.
I got the idea from this Post article by Michelle Singletary. In it, she suggests throwing out (or recycling) 50 things this spring. But somehow, 50 didn’t seem like enough. (Which is Michelle’s point: It’s enough to get STARTED.) I’ll let you know how it goes. Cleaning is an art. I haven’t learned it yet. But if I clear away enough stuff, maybe I’ll have room to create. Which will mean that my April was a little artsy after all.
