Skip to main content

Oh Cleanliness!


I won’t lie. When the lockdown first came into effect, what did I miss most (after loo rolls of course!)? A clean flat. You may think that living with a toddler and baby under the same roof may have increased my tolerance of dirt, grime and mess. On the contrary, it’s done just the opposite. It’s my biggest stressor after perpetual lack of sleep.


So, when our cleaner resumed services today, I was in seventh heaven until my toddler spilt a glass of juice on the freshly mopped floor (nooooo!). Ok breathe...1,2,3....


Oh for those of you who might be concerned, yes our cleaner wears a mask and gloves and yes we practice social distancing - We are not remotely interested in leaning against the bathroom door as she is busy scrubbing down the toilet pot; thank you very much! And of course she doesn’t bring her own cleaning materials (Thanking you kindly for the judgement)


Anyway, coming back to my state of happiness as soon as the cleaner left was something else! To feel such freshness after 6 long months was divine. It felt like our flat had just returned from the spa. Shiny countertops, squeaky clean mirrors, and dust free surfaces. 


I’ve always been a cleanliness freak so I end up cleaning when I could be doing something more sensible like resting. “Sleep when the baby sleeps” Oh so easy to say but oh so difficult for me to practice as I really cannot sleep when I will eventually wake up to a grubby looking flat. 


A clean flat for me is an instant mood lifter. Rage cleaning a sore weakness. When I’m on a mad cleaning spree the “victims” know better than to potter about in the disaster zone. You do not just toss a fork into the sink when I’m scrubbing the dishes. And no you don’t saunter in with your shoes onto my freshly mopped floor. And how are you so brave for smattering my just cleaned kitchen top with biscuit crumbs?! 


Some say this need for cleanliness is innate, some say it’s learnt. For me it’s definitely the latter. My paternal grandma drilled the importance of cleanliness in me from a very young age and I also learnt through observing her. Her cleaning schedules and meticulous demeanour were something else! Today at 90yrs of age she still ensures the cleanliness of our home is taken care of albeit less rigorously and with able assistance of course. 


Tidying up the place when you have young kids is like trying to clean in a snowstorm. On the road. But I try! I try to tidy up after the bub as much as possible and have started playing tidying up “games” with the toddler. Who can put the Lego in the basket first and so on. You get the drift..


I can go on and on as clearly it’s my secret obsession (not anymore) but I respect that you may think differently. So, I will conclude with a verse from the poem ‘Dust If You Must’ by Rose Milligan which is obviously an antithesis. 


“Dust if you must, but bear in mind 

Old age will come and it’s not kind.

And when you go (and go you must)

You, yourself, will make more dust.”








Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Comfort Food

Today, as I hurriedly grabbed the pot of plain yogurt from the fridge to scoop into my boys’ plates, I was reminded of an incident during my early days in the UK. Having recently arrived in the UK, I was wistfully in the quest for something that reminded me of home, of Mumbai. I distinctly remember that cold winter’s day in the year when the financial recession combined with thick inches of snow made for a grim state of mind. A mind like mine then wasn’t bereft of existential questions. And so, I braved the biting cold to step out into the freezing afternoon, dressed as a novice would – just a jacket, thin woollen gloves and an ill fitting cap.  I walked into the local supermarket as I often do when I am feeling a little glum. The general buzz of activity along with easily accessible food aid in calming my overactive thought processes. I sauntered into the dairy aisle without really meaning to as who in their right mind would consciously enter the cold storage area without having a...
Post a Comment
Read more

It’s Ok To Not Be Ok

Whilst the motherland struggles with the worst covid surge yet, I feel like a helpless outsider, constantly on edge, always worrying about my family and friends in India. The images flooding the news are heart wrenching to say the least. I recently read a poem by Meera Kandasamy and the line “my country is a crematorium” shook me because it couldn’t be further from the truth. As adults we are conditioned to say “I’m fine “, “I’m ok” when in reality we are not. The admission of not being ok is somehow equated to being weak and this unhealthy dialogue serves to damage our mental health. Also saying you are not ok makes the person who asked uncomfortable and we have learnt over the years to always try and steer clear of awkwardness. As moms we are expected to just get on with it and we do because many a times we don’t have a choice or we assume that we don’t. A lot depends on us doesn’t it? So how do we help ourselves in such distressing times? Here are a few things (for lack of a better ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Validating Vulnerability

Being strong and brave has always been admired whereas expressing any sort of vulnerability is looked down upon. When someone is articulating their feelings of vulnerability, our first response is to say “oh you are so brave” or “you are a fighter”. We say this perhaps with the intention of making the other person feel better. However by saying this what we are doing is that we are indirectly telling this other person that their feelings of vulnerability are in fact not valid because hey remember you’re strong right ?  We need to change the conversation here and it needs to happen now. The person who is accepting their vulnerability and speaking about it is in fact very strong. It takes a special kind of strength to be vulnerable. So yes they know they are strong. They didn’t ask for your validation about it . What they did ask was for you to acknowledge their feelings of vulnerability rather than trying to put a “positive spin” on everything. Because sometimes , it’s important to ...
Post a Comment
Read more