and how they shaped me
When I was a kid we had jobs to do on Saturday mornings. Mom and dad would talk about what needed to be done. My dad would hand write a list for us in his usual neat all caps printing. It would have our name and then underneath a list of jobs. We could see what everyone else in the family was assigned to do, including mom and dad. We would usually have an inside job or two and an outside job. We were also responsible for any personal jobs like cleaning our room if it needed it.
When I shared a room with my teenage sister, I remember dreading the job of cleaning it. We are 6 years apart. It’s not like our room was dirty it was just cluttered with clothes everywhere. She would try something on and decide not to wear it and instead of hanging it up or putting it back in the dresser it would end up draped over the back of a chair or on the floor. I would tell my mom it wasn’t fair and that when I had my own room she would see that it was my sister who was the messy one and not me. (Just for the record my sister is an extremely organized and clean person today. She was just a typical teenager when it came to her clothes. She definitely grew out of it.) When she left for college I got my own room and it was always clean with the bed made. Because my room was never messy I never had to worry about it on Saturday mornings. This meant I got done with my jobs and on to playing sooner than I would have if it was messy. I am a big fan of making the bed. A room feels instantly tidy once the bed is made. Put dirty clothes in the hamper and clean clothes away in closets or drawers. Clothes never belong on the floor. Keeping a space clean and tidy daily means you don’t have to spend hours on it later.
My favorite inside job was to tidy, dust and vacuum the living room/dining room. We had two large hutches with open shelves at the top. Those shelves were filled with treasures. A collection of bells made of metal, porcelain, wood and glass. Mushrooms my dad carved out of wood, stone and bone in all sorts of shapes and sizes. A set of pretty wine glasses, etched with vines and flowers, we used for Sunday dinners. Tiny mice made of wood with delicate ears and tails. Wooden plates and trays along with beautiful and unique pottery made by my dad. A porcelain set featuring children playing on a tire swing hanging from a tree, that belonged to my mom. (The three of us younger kids determined those kids were us.) Anyway, when I got that job I would carefully take everything off the hutches and put it all on the dining room table. Then I used pledge and a rag made from an old t-shirt to dust and clean. Afterwards I was allowed to put everything back, IN WHATEVER WAY I WANTED. I LOVED doing this so much. I loved that my mom was happy with whatever we did and did not make a fuss about things being put back in a particular way. I took so much pride in the job I did. I never doubted my ability to make something clean and look beautiful. This job gave me so much confidence. Doing this shaped the way I decorate today and the satisfaction I feel when I am done.
Outside jobs would include things like, helping in the garden, mowing the lawn, picking up dog poop or doing something in the garage with dad (the garage is another post altogether). I was surprised when after my dad passed, my mom mentioned she had never mowed the lawn and didn’t know how. I felt really grateful my dad taught me how to do things like that and that there was no separation of boy jobs or girl jobs like there was for most of my friends. My mom and dad ended up with daughters that can build and fix things, paint, mow lawns and harvest food. They have sons that know how to clean, do laundry well, cook amazing food and sew! I thank Saturday jobs for so much of that education. There is confidence is being capable.
Sometimes, usually during the summer, we would be assigned a larger job that would take weeks to complete. My birthday is at the end of June. In Canada that was the end of school and the start of summer. The year I turned 11, on the following Saturday, I came up to the kitchen and found the job list. Under my name it said “job for the summer: prep and paint the back porch, garage balcony and painters bench”. This was going to be a HUGE project. That day we started with the bench. My dad showed me how to scrape the peeling paint off, how to sand any parts that needed it, clean the wood and prep for painting. Then he showed me how to paint, primer first and then top coat. He told me not to put too much paint on the brush and to use long strokes with even pressure. After we were finished with the bench and it was drying my dad took me down to the sink in the basement and taught me how to clean my paint brushes properly. To this day when I smell turpentine I think of my dad washing paint brushes at the basement sink. Such a happy memory. After dad taught me everything I needed to know I was ready to tackle the back porch and garage balcony by myself. It took most of the summer to complete. This experience taught me the importance of doing things the right way the first time and that some projects can’t be done in a day and that’s okay. My dad knew I was the type of person that wanted to see the finished product in a very short amount of time. This taught me I needed to be patient.
So why am I sharing all of this with you? So much of what I do and what I share and teach about home organization and management is rooted in what I learned as a child doing jobs on Saturday mornings. When my two oldest were little I taught a workshop I called Get Organized and Stay Clean. In some of my blog posts I will share the tips, plans, and inspiration contained in that workshop along with the many things I’ve learned since then. Moving forward look for the workshop tittle GET ORGANIZED AND STAY CLEAN in the heading of these posts. Have a great day! I hope this post at least motivates you to make your bed.
KIERSTA BAILEY 