The Joy of Containers

Daily Writing Prompt: What activities do you lose yourself in?

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I lose myself in containers. I forget to rummage for snacks and lunch is delayed. This could be the start of the Container Diet book. Containers exercise me physically and mentally. They ease stress, relax and allow beauty to surround me.

The reasons are twofold:

Organizing

Because my youth was spent in chaos, order gives me pleasure and peace. Containers create a systematic taming of disorder. I find creative ways to repurpose the plastic and packaging already in the house to use for storage. Not that I forgo new storage products.

Cardio and strength training come into play as I lift and move items around. Editing the sentimental items releases emotional conflicts and the need for resolution. The efficient and attractive placement of the stuff I want to keep and the letting go of excess things feels like freedom.

Gardening

My outdoor planter containers get filled with annuals and herbs in the spring. A single container of a store-bought perennial becomes a multitude of plants as they get divided and transplanted year after year. The colorful plantings and the small outdoor creatures that meander around them allow me to gaze at them for hours and find calm.

Buying a young plant in a small container is not the end of it. As I water, trim, recycle and transplant the greenery, exercise sneaks into this pastime. Also to research and plan a garden is a fun and challenging brain game.

Excuse the hyperbole, I can’t contain myself.

Lost in Conservation

The more energy used,

The lower the cost.

The less energy used,

The higher the cost.*

Buying in bulk saves money,

Buying small amounts costs more.

Punished for conserving energy.

Come on people in power,

Either climate change is a threat

Or it’s not.

Incentives can be powerful.

Do the right thing

Or stop the mortification.

*The explanation I got from an energy company when costs went up and consumption went down.

Fast Forward

Daily Writing Prompt: What advice would you give to your teenage self?

Never forget that you are stupid. You will do so many things that your older self will wonder how you even survived into your 20’s.

Think before you do. So many mistakes, so many times.

Be careful who you trust.

Run away from toxic relationships.

You are not fat.

You are not ugly.

Every second you live, time speeds up.

Appreciate the simple pleasures, they count more than you will ever think.