It’s been a full day.

So full that after dinner was made, served and eaten, I was seriously thinking about putting my feet up and reading a chapter in one of my current books. {David McCullough’s 1776 and Cassandra’s Sister-Growing Up Jane Austen, by Veronica Bennett, both quite enjoyable!}

But then there was the dilemma of dirty dishes.

And not just dishes but also cleaning up the chicken carcass left from deboning a cooked chicken for green chili burros. And wiping up the seeds and skins from the frozen green chili’s; cleaning the cutting board with onion, lettuce and tomato remnants; finding a container for the leftover green chili sauce; putting the leftover chicken broth from slow-cooking the chicken in a jar; cleaning up the cilantro bits and garlic skins on the counter….

You know, the kind of mess that isn’t a big deal, but looks intimidating anyway?

My first thought was: “I don’t want to do the dishes and clean the kitchen.”

My second thought was: “I want to relax for awhile, with a clean kitchen in the back of my mind.“

So I started self-coaching.

“This will be easier than it looks.
I’ve got the energy to do this.
I’m so grateful I have food to cook!
And a dishwasher too!
This will be done in no time.
Way to go Jacque, you’re making light work of this!”

And then, in short order, the job was done.

I’m happy that I don’t have to go back to that mess later.

I can read my book and really relax.

And, tomorrow morning, I can greet my kitchen with that clean slate feeling.

No, my house isn’t spotless and my dishes aren’t always done. But I know myself well enough to know that if I allow things to get too far gone, it will be many times harder to deal with the mess magnified by the feeling of overwhelm!

It’s amazing what we can do, and how efficient we can be when we are concentrating our thoughts in a forward-moving, positive direction. And amazing how nice it feels to lead out as an agent, and not feel put upon as a victim…even by dirty dishes.

I wish you peace.

God bless,

The mission of Lioness at the Door is to uplift, strengthen and encourage women of all ages to magnify health, hope and happiness at home. We do so boldly, with humility and gratitude for the opportunity.