Bedlam

I've shown you my bedroom and the bed my dad made before, but it was quite awhile ago.  There's a reason for that, you see I don't make my bed very often, so the photo ops in my bedroom are few and far between.

The definition for the word bedlam is...

–noun

 

1.  a scene or state of wild uproar and confusion.

2.  Archaic . an insane asylum or madhouse.

Sometimes both of these definitions fit this room perfectly.  It is the place where we rush around getting ready in the morning, sometimes at 4:45 am on the days Mr. Tide goes into the city for work.  And I think that anyone who has to get up at 4:45 am is a bit insane, so that makes this room meet the qualifications for an insane asylum or madhouse.

Some might say that it's a place of uproar and chaos too, since I choose not to make the bed each day, preferring to roll out of bed and leave the rumpled mess of sheets and blankets behind.

Growing up, we made our beds every day.  It was one of our chores, and we did it dutifully each morning.  We would wake up, put our feet on the floor, and pull the bedspread up in one fell swoop.  I could make a bed that even a drill sergeant would have been proud of.

My mother loved a neat house and beds that looked as though no one had really ever slept in them.  She wasn't mean or harsh in having us make our beds but instead taught us the fine art of making a good bed.  This meant that our home was always welcoming but also pulled together.

I didn't inherit that gene.  Oh I love a nice clean house with everything in it's place, don't get me wrong, but bed making has never ranked high on my list of things to do.  When my children were little, I helped them make their beds, and most of the time all of the beds in the house were made.

But as I got older, and so did they, well bed making kind of gave way to just asking that I be able to see the color of their carpeting!  Teenagers never seem to mind a messy room, and my daughter had messy down to a science!

My son is more like me.  He can let things pile up for awhile, but then he has to take control and do something about it.  While my daughter can find order in the madness, and she truly can, I need order to stem the tide, and my son is the same way.

I've termed my style of cleaning manic depressive cleaning.  When I'm in the depressive phase of cleaning I can walk past dust, dog hair, and dirty clothes for a period of time, but when the manic phase takes over...look out!

Thankfully, the depressive cleaning periods don't last for more than a few days, and the full on manic cleaning days have gotten fewer over the years too.  Now I find that I am somewhere in between.  But today was a manic day.

Mr. Tide and my son Bugs were gone this morning, so I took advantage of the quiet and began stripping beds, and cleaning out stuff that needed to go!  It's that time of year after all, when we are poised to throw open the windows and enjoy a freshly cleaned house.

When I get into one of these deep cleaning moods, I also like to rearrange and move things from one place to another.  Like the jewelry box that belonged to my mother.  I decided that instead of keeping the costume jewelry I inherited in a box hidden away, I would open up the jewelry box and fill it up so that I could enjoy seeing these pretty pieces all the time.

And the little angel that used to sit on my vanity now sits next to my bed.  She's been with me since I was a very little girl.

And wherever you go in my house, you'll find beach glass.  So it only makes sense that there would be some sitting on the cherry bedside table my father made.

When I was in Yorkshire with my daughter a few years ago, we stopped in a lovely little shop and I picked up this small stone.  I love the quote by Buddha, and it reminds me to clear my head each night before it hits the pillow.

I love this photo of my mother when she was a little girl.  It makes me laugh since she didn't like cats and was actually afraid of them.  Something must have happened after this picture was taken, because she looks pretty content with her dolls and that little kitty cat.

Also in every room in our house, you will find something to read.  Magazines and books provide me with inspiration, and I love having them around.  I change up the selection on my nightstand so that I can just reach over and grab the latest magazine or a favorite decorating book to peruse before bedtime.

And of course I have to have fresh flowers close by.

Yesterday I stopped by one of my favorite Mennonite farms and purchased this gorgeous orchid.  I also picked up a primrose and a gerbera daisy that I have in other rooms.  I can't wait until my rose bushes are in full bloom and I can simply wander outside and cut flowers to fill my house with fragrance and color!

Now you may be wondering why I don't make my bed more often if the end result makes me feel happy and calm.  Or how I can leave the beautiful family bedspreads and linens stacked up and looking forlorn.  After my mother died almost 7 years ago, my sister and I had a long conversation and while we were talking I asked her if she made her bed every day?  She said, "Heck no, look at how mom spent all those years making beds and where did it get her?!"  

Though I'm happy to have a nicely made bed, and a roof over my head each night, I no longer feel the need to have a perfectly pulled together bed in order to start the day.  I can leave the covers strewn about, dog beds tossed all over the floor, and a shirt or two draped over the chair and still know that I'll have a very good, and even productive day!

Sometimes we just need to let go of the little things in order to enjoy the big ones.  I hope each of you lets go a little today and does something that makes you happy.

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