Polished To Shine

A few days ago I was talking to someone about the household chores that we all have in common.  We also got on the subject of enjoying time off while although our intent is to relax and not have to worry about work for a period of time, we quickly end up getting caught up in the many things that are left to do around the house.  When we are busy during the weeks when work and other life schedules are filled to capacity, we lose sight of some of the specific cleaning duties that we normally don't have time for.  Among them may be; cleaning closets, oven cleaning, window washing, touch up painting or perhaps a longer term project that needs attention in your garden or yard.  The list can be quite substantial and when one is at home, the last thing you think about is how you will spend some newly earned extra time on yet more action items that you were trying to get away from.  I was thinking of all of these things as I was planning some time off from work and then I thought about one of the old household chores of years past when people used to polish their silver.  This was in the older days when people had fine cutlery which was made of actual silver and it periodically needed to be polished to shine and get rid of whatever tarnish may have accumulated.  I began to think about this as it relates to our own lives as many of us have accumulated our own version of tarnish which tends to hang onto us until we finally pay attention to getting rid of it.  For all of us those stains come in many different forms.  Some of us have to contend with build-up that can consist of bad habits, damaging experiences from childhood or resentfulness towards others from adult relationships that took the life out of you.  There are a multitude of things that we all have accrued over the years and for as many years as it took to gain that deficient inventory, it can take a considerable amount of time to get rid of all that one has been collected.  Therefore, I think of periods like vacations as one of those opportune times to work on polishing myself up, so that I acknowledge all of the things that I have acquired, that I know I can be better off without.  If you have gotten to a point in your life through out a busy year, where you feel a good amount of weight on your shoulders from the many things that you have compiled, then perhaps you need to choose a weekend if a vacation is not imminent, to do some polishing for yourself.  Make a list of things that you know you would like to address and perhaps finally put behind you, as you become more resolved in setting forth on correcting some of these items that you feel should be left in your past.  Many of us become collectors of prized poor habits, that we know serve us no positive purpose in our lives.  The key is to make sure that you begin to address them and it all begins with the acknowledgement first.  It is hard to get rid of things if one feels there is no issue or perhaps they have grown accustomed to that being part of your normal living.  Poor habits, unresolved feelings or a lifetime of resentment can weigh down the strongest individual.  It behooves us to live a more meaningful and well balanced life, that is exempt from those things that provide no value to us.  As you contemplate the end of the summer and the next long holiday weekend ahead, think about doing some holistic household chores that involves your own scouring of things that you finally need to do away with.  When you begin some of those planned tasks that need your undivided attention, include yourself on that important list of things to accomplish.  We need to strive to live a more balanced life and getting rid of things that make us feel uneven should be a priority.  Don't let then next period of rest for yourself slip you by, without paying attention to some needed personal polish.  Your home and your life will be at a much happier state, when you place the right amount of attention on those things that matter most.