The Before is Messy and the After is Worth It...

I took on a massive task that's been on my to-do list for over a month: Cleaning out my master closet.

Whenever I find myself in a season of life where it's time for a re-set (a rebuild, a life makeover, or anything in between), I go back to my foundational principles which, in many cases, comes from Louise L. Hay's book You Can Heal Your Life.

In the chapter on prosperity, Louise says the following:

"Make room for the new. Clean out your refrigerator; get rid of all those little bits of stuff wrapped in foil. Clean out your closets; get rid of all the stuff you have not used in the last six months or so. If you haven't used it in a year, definitely get it out of your home. Sell it, trade it, give it away, or burn it. Cluttered closets means a cluttered mind. As you clean the closet, say to yourself, "I am cleaning out the closets of my mind." The Universe loves symbolic gestures."

And, for the last month, my intuition has been pinging me with this to-do: "Clean out your master closet. Clutter blocks blessings. Start with your closet."

And, week after week, I found myself 'too busy' to work on it. Truth be told, I am very busy and every minute I have already has a list of productive things I could be doing. However, I'm a firm believer in energy and the power of shifting energy through things like clutter clearing, saging, and feng shui.

Well, today, I woke up and my intuition said "Yes, you have a lot to do and, yes, cleaning your closet is the #1 priority"... so I made it my #1 priority...

At first, it was rough.

I looked at my mess of a closet (a closet I hadn't organized since I moved into my home) and the first thing I felt was shame. Look at these before pictures:

Shame is a tough emotion. It makes us want to turn away...

As I started cleaning up the mess, I had to remind myself the power of being in the BEFORE...

So often, we're in our BEFORE ashamed and afraid. We have a vision for the AFTER but we're not exactly sure we'll make it there... and cleaning my closet was no different.

I had to coach myself through it by reminding myself of a truth I've lived many, many times:

Never be ashamed of your before. It paves the way for AFTER... and the AFTER is worth whatever it takes. -- Kassandra Vaughn

So I dug in and, with the help of my husband, we got my master closet cleaned and cleared. Three hours later, here's what it now looks like:

And here's the lesson:

Gratitude is both a verb and a noun. Living gratefully is about honoring the abundance we have by taking care of it and using it well.

I wasn't doing that with my closet and I could feel that, as I've spent the last few months focusing on generating more abundance, I was missing the mark- it wasn't about creating more but about valuing the MORE I already had.

Here was my other lesson:

The BEFORE is the price we pay to get to the AFTER... and there is no shortcutting the messy middle.

I wanted a master closet that was clean and clear, a closet that I could wake up in the early morning and meditate in... but I kept talking myself out of it by being 'too busy.' Well, today, I listened to my intuition and, yes, I didn't get much else done, but I got the MOST IMPORTANT thing completed... and that was this closet.

Now I can wake up at 4:30 am tomorrow morning and, before I start my day, I can sit in my chair and begin the day in meditation. I have no idea (yet) how much of a win that alone truly is...

Remember that your BEFORE is simply a starting point, a lead in to your AFTER. Yes, it's hard to start. Yes, there's shame and fear walking the journey with you. And, yes, you have what it takes to do what is required to move successfully from BEFORE to AFTER.

The most important thing you can do to succeed is this: START...