Snow in September

This afternoon I needed a nap.

Badly.

It was not going to happen, but I did take a moment and stretched out on the little couch in the living room.  That was my mistake.

Because instead of closing my eyes and really napping, I looked up at the ceiling.  And the ceiling fan.

WHAT. ON. EARTH.
How in the world did the blades get THAT bad without me realizing it before now?

Details are not my forte, y’all.  Apparently.

It troubled me so much that I could not rest.  I got up in search of the thingy-how-ya-doin’ that we use to clean the blades.  It’s nice because it can stretch out whereas I cannot.  Our Princess found it and excitedly brought it in.  She went and called Cooter to come in and watch the fun.

Yeah.  I guess heavy cleaning around here is so rare it’s considered a party.  *sigh*

I used the brush and wiped off the dust from the bottom of the blades, and, shuddering to think how bad the tops were, I stretched out and wiped those too.

Snow in September!

At least that’s what the littles called it as all the dust fell to the floor.

What a mess.

As I was working, going from blade to blade, our Princess asked, “Mama, how on earth did they get that dirty?  Where did all that dust come from?”

I explained, through teeth gritted in determination to reach each and every spot, how dust is floating in the air and the blades catch it and it stays there and builds up to what we can see.

“That’s amazing,” she said.  “Because I can’t see dust in the air.  And yet, there’s so much on the blades!”

Yes.  There was.

As I swept up the mess I made by cleaning the fan, it occurred to me that we are lot like those blades.  We go through our day to dailies, collecting bits and pieces of what is going on around us.  Somehow all of the energy and attitudes and things we see, read, and hear in a day collect on our spirits.

And eventually, if we aren’t careful, it changes who we are, and we need a good soul-searching spirit cleansing to get ourselves back in balance.

Back to a good place.  Sometimes, like with my floor, things can get even messier before we get to that place.

Don’t wander through the dust if you can help it, y’all.  Surround yourselves with good energy, people with good attitudes, and read all the good things.  Listen to music that feeds your soul, and look upon the beautiful.  Seek beauty in everything, and you will find it.  Don’t let the naysayers and negativity in this world latch on to you and bring you down or darken your heart.  Take time to soothe the hurts and give lots of hugs.

I tend to think hugs help knock the dust off myself.

May we all find someone to help us dust ourselves off and begin again and to point out the beauty when we forget.

Love to all.

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If you need some pointers as you begin to seek beauty, follow my friend Hugh Hollowell’s weekly blog on just that.  Beauty.  And the relentless pursuit of it. Click here to check it out yourself.  (And here to sign up for it.)  It’s a good place to dust off.