An Epiphany About Reorganizing

If you've been paying attention to my weekly to-do lists lately, you've noticed that I've been on something of an organization kick. So far, I've been working my way through our bookshelves, our built-in cabinets, the freezer, my closet, and my nightstand. 

It's my natural tendency to love organization and for everything to have its place. There's something soothing about knowing where things are when you need them. So when Michael and I first moved into this little apartment of ours, I took my time trying to think through the process of where each piece belonged, grouping like items together, finding apt-sized containers to corral smaller items, trying to think ahead about where I might look for a certain object.

And for the past year, the organization has worked. When Michael asks where something is, I can usually tell him within one or two guesses—it's either here or there.

But lately, I've started looking at this humble abode of ours with new eyes. I've started to think, "Now what if I rearranged that?" "Is there a way I could make this arrangement even better, even more practical?" "Where is space being wasted?"

And as I've asked myself these questions, I've started getting new ideas, seeing new solutions and fine-tuning the layout and structure to make something that worked well to work even better. The lights click on and keep clicking as I make my way through our cupboard and shelves and drawers.

It's been an epiphany to realize that I don't have to wait until something needs to be fixed, but I can be preemptive and bring improvement now. Normally, if something is working well, I leave it as is and don't mess with it until need be. But over the course of a year, things that I thought would work inevitably show less practicality or stumble slowly into disarray. 

And so I'm discovering and relishing the opportunity to, slowly but surely, look at this little realm of ours and find little ways to make it work better for us. Which goes to show that it's never too late or too early for a little change.

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