Out of Chaos an organizing newsletter
Joy: Let Every Day be Christmas
I have just finished reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. While I have a few quibbles, and I’m not sure that I, much less my clients, could follow her program, there is so much to think about in this book that I urge everyone to read it.
Kondo’s main precept, which you might have read about in The New York TImes, is that you should only keep things that spark joy. While I can find arguments with this (bike helmets, Caltrate) she makes a wonderful point about appreciating and honoring what we have.
Last year, I bought myself some new bowls. You might have seen them in my holiday guide-there are six of them, in deep, vibrant colors. I love them. Every morning I look up in my cabinet and I think: Is it a blue day? Or an orange day? And when I eat my yogurt and flax seed, it tastes better because the bowl is so pretty. I can honestly say that every time I touch those bowls they make me happy. Now they are just an everyday bowls, more expensive than Pottery Barn, but far cheaper than my wedding china. And yet they bring me so much joy.
So this holiday, let us be mindful of our everyday objects: Which bring us joy? Which don’t? And let’s think about the difference between the cheap thrill of acquisition and plain and simple joy. Sometimes you give your child something they’ve seen on TV that they have begged for, like the Spiderman triple-web blaster. And they are thrilled when they open it. They run around like crazy for a day or two and then it breaks, it runs out of silly string, they get bored. It is discarded.
This year for Hanukkah I bought my daughter a (totally-made-in-China) over-sized pillow with a ridiculously plush cover from Target. I just knew she would love it. And I think it brings her joy. I think it brings her joy because she named it and she brings it to breakfast every morning. I think it brings her joy because it is just so soft. I think that every time she goes to bed that soft, fluffy pillow is going to make her smile. And that is not a cheap thrill, my friend, that is pure joy.