Clean Your Room

Did I just do bullshit? That sounds disgusting but I’m being sincere. Did I write some bullshit down here? Because I wrote in the last post, “be kind to yourself”. Do that before you attempt any other method for being happy (religion, money, yoga, love, etc). You can’t attempt any path to happiness if the starting point is empty.

But someone asked the obvious question: what does it mean to be kind to yourself?

And I thought about it. At first it seems obvious. Look in the mirror (if you can) and like what you see. But that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. It also doesn’t mean go out and buy yourself a chocolate cake (although that might make you feel good).

So I cleaned up my room.

Its part of my ongoing minimalist manifesto. A few weeks ago I got rid of a lifelong comic book collection. And yesterday I got rid of about 20 pairs of pants. 20 button down shirts. 40 or 50 books. And assorted other items. Now I open my closet and it’s a pleasure to look at its emptiness. I look at my bookshelves and it’s only filled with absolutely the books I most want to keep.

So I was kind to myself.

Clean up your room. That could be literal. Or it could be metaphorical. You can go as deep as you want with this. You can physically clean up your room. Or you can apply all the levels of what I call the “Daily Practice” and decide what it means to “emotionally”  or  mentally or spiritually, clean your room. You decide what that means. Do a little each day.

People every day protest about society, are sad about their relationships, are upset at their jobs or bosses. But to create a society you have to be kind to others. To have a good job people have to be kind at the workplace. To be in a good relationship you have to be kind to your lover. But to do all of these things, to create a better society, first you have to make sure your “society of one” is good. And you have to do it today. Tomorrow doesn’t even exist yet. There’s only today. That’s being kind to yourself.