The Fly Lady

By Elizabeth Foss
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 1/23/03)

"This year, I’m going to be more organized. My house will be clean and I will be able to find my shoes whenever I want to leave the house."

Sound familiar? This is the resolution made by countless women (and men) every year. This year, I heard it from two of my dearest friends. Both of them are self-proclaimed "messies," supposedly beyond rehabilitation and happily ensconced in cluttered homes. This year, within days of each other, they began "FLYing." FLYing is the term given to ridding one’s home of clutter and instituting routines according to The FLYlady, Marla Cilley, author of Sink Reflections and an internet guru of personal organization.

Since I was intrigued by The FLYlady’s success with these formerly hopeless cases, I checked her Web site (www.flylady.net) to see what the secrets were. Basically, she’s an e-mail nag who reminds them several times a day of various missions, like shining the sink, wearing shoes and conquering clutter, which taken together, will result in a clean, organized home and a homemaker who can "FLY (Finally Love Yourself)." Her mission is a noble one.

It does matter if your home is neat, clean and organized. In a messy, disorganized home where you are trying to run an efficient household, things take over your life. Managing things, organizing them, cleaning them, picking them up and putting them away consumes your time at home. Conversely, in a home overrun with things where no attempt is made at order, chaos reigns supreme. The FLYlady calls CHAOS the Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome. You know that scenario: someone announces she is coming to visit and the mad scramble to clear a path to the door and living room begins. Clutter can and does control lives. In the FLYlady’s world, orderly routines reign supreme.

When I was pregnant with my second son, despairing of how I’d ever keep the house clean with two little boys, I read the following quote: "Like the sun rising in the heights of the Lord, so is the beauty of a good wife in her well-ordered home." (Sir 26: 16) In another version, the verse reads "...radiant home."

To me, there is such promise in a new day, a new year. I enjoy the quiet anticipation of a day in the aftermath of the holidays. Morning is a respite, a time to focus. So, too, is a well-ordered home. Radiance connotes warmth, brightness, blessing. That’s what we want: both order and warmth. We can bring warmth and peace and order to our homes so that they radiate the joy of a sunrise.

If I begin my day with a clean, clutter-free house, I am more cheerful. If routines are in place and I know what to expect of myself, things run more smoothly even though life with small children is unpredictable.

Why is this such a noble mission? Because an ordered home will bring us closer to heaven. Clutter is composed of extra possessions that draw heavily upon the time and energy of the owner. It is possible to get to heaven under the heavy load of great material wealth, but it is undoubtedly a more difficult journey. The saints embrace poverty and simplicity in their lives. St. Augustine wrote, "The love of worldly possessions is a sort of bird line, which entangles the soul, and prevents it from flying to God." I wonder if the FLYlady has read St. Augustine.

Consider this quote from Upbringing by James Stenson: "Being ‘poor in spirit’ (a Christian virtue) means being detached from things — being able to possess goods without being possessed by them. It means ... putting people ahead of possessions — and seeing material things only as instruments for serving God and the needs of others."

The FLYlady suggests ridding our homes of clutter by means of a 27 Fling Boogie, moving through our homes, getting rid of 27 items at a time until the job is finished. I find this job much easier when I consider that my discards can bless someone else (and that getting rid of them can bless me). St. John Chrysostom said, "The man who owns two coats, not only should, but is obliged, to pass one on to the man who has none." That’s a great challenge to hold as a banner as we fling. Furthermore, de-cluttering brings contentedness. St. Francis de Sales writes that there are two ways to acquire all we want: keep getting more and more or desire less.

I’ve done a fair amount of flinging over the past three weeks. I donated over 600 pounds of clothing and linens. I feel 600 pounds freer, 600 pounds less encumbered. As for my friends, one of them has started with simply keeping her sink shiny all day long, the other has filed a permit to put a dumpster in her yard for a few days while she flings. They’re both really FLYing now, and their lives are becoming more radiant and well-ordered by the moment.

Foss is a freelance writer from Northern Virginia.

Copyright ©2003 Arlington Catholic Herald.  All rights reserved.