Bursting at the seams!

Cluttered organization has become a new normal for me. I'm ok with that most of the time. The space we are living in is about the size of an average Canadian bedroom. So to cram all of us with all of our stuff in...requires some creativity and some deep calming breaths.

 

Everyonce in a while I have to gut each of the shelves and cuboards, clean it, and then put everything back on it. There are no empty horizontal spaces here. There are no empty spaces on the walls. There are towels hanging next to our table and jackets hanging above the beds.

 

Our clothes are crammed into little cuboards designed for a weekend of camping not a winter full or varying weather and growth spurts. I gave up on organization behind the doors. Stuff it in...close the door...quick.

 

I miss dresser drawers.

 

Aili and Roman each have a shelf for their clothes and the middle is for both of their school books. We have it down to a science though. In the morning each of their school book bins gets set on the sofa (which must be changed from a bed into it's more useful daytime form). All the bedding is shoved onto one of the bunks where they stay with the toy boxes. Before bed the books are shoved back in the cupboard and the couch once again becomes Aili's bed.

The two shelves next to the door hold..well..just about everything. I should have a "caution falling dishes" sign stuck on the front of my kitchen cuboard. There are so many dishes, vitamins, and containers stuffed into my one overhead cuboard that quite often there is an avalanche waiting for me.

It's easy to get frustrated or discontent with our current home but all I have to do is wander a few minutes away to find people without the things that I have and often take for granted. Hot running water, a floor, cupboards to put clothes, clothes to fill my cupboards, clean dry beds, a fridge, places to sit, a propane stove, a table...a roof. It's amazing how that puts things into a whole different perspective. It's all about function right now....things like convenience and decor will have to wait. As far as function and practicality goes we have everything we need and more.

For once in my life not being a neat freak works to my benefit. We have to be pretty meticulous about putting things where they go otherwise there will be no table to eat on or place to sleep but when everything is put in it's place and it still looks like an overcrowded dorm room....I can still relax.

It's funny how some personality traits that often are a disadvantage at home make life here easier. I'm naturally a very flexible "go with the flow" kind of person. Sometimes at home that can be seen as flaky or impulsive. Here that flexible, make-do personality allows me to survive and even thrive. I guess God knew what he was doing when he pieced me together. I've seen the same thing in my husband as well, probably to a greater extent since he is much more involved in the ministry here. God is using his unique giftings and peronality traits to the fullest right now. It's really an amazing thing to witness.