By Grace Sweeney
Once upon a time, I walked toward my bedroom closet. This wasn’t unusual, of course, but it was in fact a climactic moment in my life. It was the moment I learned of my greatest bane, my greatest fear, my greatest nemesis.
Mess.
Mess is a villain of the worst sorts. It’s like a creeping fog, the way it oozes into every single part of my closet. Things get scattered all over, drawers get unorganized…. It’s a necessary evil, mess is.
Anyway. I opened my closet door, grabbed a pair of socks, and was about to close the door, when… I bet you can’t guess what happened.
The closet rod fell down.
Clothes leapt out at me from every direction. The rod seemed for a minute like it was alive as it sprung toward me like a serpent with its fangs bared. Boxes tumbled off of the shelf above my head, threatening to knock me out. Drawers were bonked, my old china dolls that were in storage almost shattered, and it was general chaos.
Needless to say, I screamed before turning and fleeing the area. The boxes and dolls clattered to the ground right where my feet had been planted and the dresses and skirts fell to the ground all in a tangle.
When I deemed it safe to return, I set my hands on my hips and stared at the mess. No one had realized how much of a wretched mess that closet was, you see, so it had built up for the last two years. Now it confronted me straight on.
I wish you could have seen the thoughts that ran through my mind at that moment. What in the world to do with the stuff? How on earth to sort it out? Where to start?
I must have stood there for five whole minutes, the same harried thoughts running through my mind. Finally, I heaved a sigh and bent to pick up the shower rod. Starting with the biggest things first turned out to be easiest.
I ended up pulling everything out of the area, untangling things, straightening the lids of the boxes, and taking out the drawers and dolls. I spread it out all across my room, then worked slowly on it. Bit by bit the closet began to look more like it had when we first moved in two-and-a-half years prior.
Usually, I don’t like cleaning. Or organizing. But with that mess, I did enjoy putting each thing back where it actually belonged, rather than slinging the clothes over the closet rod and stuffing things in drawers or on the shelves.
That said, I also learned a few things about tackling a mess like that and organizing it—so I thought I might share them with you. After all, if I can do anything to help you avoid this catastrophe happening to you, it’s my moral duty to oblige.
A Small Checklist of Tips for Putting Things Away:
Never, ever, ever shove things into a closet without making sure it’s all organized.
It’s helpful to take everything out of the messy area before starting to organize, so that you can see all the space you have to work with.
Don’t be afraid to make a mess to fix a mess.
Go slowly and don’t rush. Rushing will only make things worse.
As I slowly continued on my noble work, I began realizing why the closet had gotten so messy.
I mean, obviously there was the fact that we’d been shoving clothes and toys and boxes inside it with barely a thought of cleanliness, but there was a deeper issue to deal with.
We had too many things.
Yes. You read that right. When I first realized it, I thought to myself, “But it’s a closet! It’s supposed to be filled to the brim with things we’ve shoved into storage!”
Spoiler: I was wrong.
With a heavy sigh I began looking through the stuff I’d spread all over the floor. My old dolls, my sister’s stuffed animals, books that had somehow made their way in there, and dresses I hadn’t worn in ages.
I loved all those things! I could never get rid of them!
So I thought.
After staring at them fixedly for what seemed to be hours, I finally took a step toward cleanliness and set aside a few things in a separate pile. It was time for them to go.
I began to realize that we hadn’t used many of those things in months or even years. It was no use keeping them around.
It was then that I learned the value of purging. Here, once again, is a small list of tips for when you purge items.
My Handy-Dandy Tips for Purging:
If you haven’t used something recently, chances are it can be given away (or thrown out). Never ever ever keep things because “I’ll get to it someday!” Someday won’t ever come.
If there’s something that has sentimental value but that you don’t use very often, put it away in a keepsake bin. That way it will stay in a safe place but doesn’t have to clutter up your regular spaces.
When you find something you don’t need anymore, I recommend setting it aside and doing one of three things with it. One, sell it at a garage sale or donate it to a thrift store. Two, give it to a friend (only if you’re sure it’ll be helpful—you don’t want to give them more clutter. Then they’ll just need to purge their own closet in a few months.) Third, throw it away. If it’s not going to be any use to anyone, just toss it out with the trash.
After many, many hours of hard work and drudgery, I finally shut the closet door with a satisfied feeling of contentment. I had pushed through the mental blocks of wishing I could shove it all into the closet and never look at it again, purged, and gotten almost everything back into its correct place.
The only thing that remained was to ask my dad to put up the closet rod again.
I left the room whistling a happy tune.
I wish I could say that was the last time I ever had to clean a closet, but alas, it was not. A couple months later I was forced to do the same thing. It happened again a few months after that.
I still struggle with the never-ending problem of the battle against mess, but I can also say with pride that I’ve improved in my cleanliness habits as of late. A bit.
What is the key to keeping closets and everything else tidy?
Consistency.
With consistency, keeping closets, the space beneath your bed (yes, I know that’s a problem area for all of us), cupboards, tables, and every other space clean and organized is a cinch.
When I let my spaces go for more than a week, that’s when I start having troubles finding things in the, ahem, piles.
When I let things go for more than a month, that’s when closet rods falling down becomes a danger.
I’m sure you can imagine the state after letting things go for six months.
Anyway, here are a few things I’ve learned about consistency that will hopefully help you avoid those horrible, nasty problems.
Grace’s Top Tips for Consistency in Organization:
Put things away as soon as you’ve finished using them. This is huge. (And make sure you put them away in the correct spot—not in a pile beneath your bed. Nooo, I have never been guilty of that. Why would you even wonder?…)
Once or twice a week, go through your spaces and tidy things up a bit. Doing a daily tidy is even better.
Write yourself a reminder on a sticky note to check on the areas that need frequent tidy-ups. And don’t look past the sticky notes—actually do the tidies.
Never, ever think “I’ll get to it later.” Trust me, later never comes.
So, there you have it! May my tale inspire you to fix your own organizing mistakes, tidy your closets, never stuff things beneath your bed, etc. etc.
Fare thee well friends, and may your closet rod stay put!
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