I've always tried to shoot straight with you about the myth that we as a culture have built of perfection. But I'll be honest - there are days I scroll through my Instagram feed and feel like I just don't measure up. There are photos I choose not to share (like the one of Lupine above) because they are imperfect; messy; vulnerably real.
And I must remind myself often to not buy into the myth.
Though the pictures above doesn't quite capture the chaos all around me, trust me when I tell you that life here is messy. Last night at 10 PM the kids and I were still up - still making, still doing. This morning the aftermath of that late night craft-a-thon remains. (We'll get to that, right after breakfast.)
There is no depth of field short enough to blur out our messes.
We have many boots and no where to store them, loads of hobbies and passions and an utter lack of shelves. We live messy. Full blown, gloves off messy.
And sure, I can make excuses about four crafty people homeschooling in a small house with abysmal storage, but that only feeds the belief that there's a picture-perfect standard we should all be striving for. And that belief feeds on our shame, insecurities, and the fear that we won't measure up. That if we have clutter in the corner we aren't good enough.
But sisters, we need no excuses. We live here. Out loud, hands-on, life-learning live here.
Life is messy. And despite our best efforts, sometimes it piles up.
And that means there will be three baskets of laundry on the living room floor because today we said yes to baking bread and carving spoons instead of folding. There will be art supplies on the table and dishes in the sink, because this is where we learn. (And we'll wash them up before bedtime anyway, so why fuss?) There will be piles of library books on the floor beside the dust bunnies, because reading comes first.
Yes, some of us were born with a tidy gene that others were passed over for. Some of us thrive only in order, while others gravitate toward chaos. And I'm here to tell you that all of those are valid. Not just the picture-perfect ones.
So welcome to our home!
We live here. It's messy. And there is no need to apologize.
Love,
Rachel
You might also enjoy Cropping, and Sisterhood of the Messy House.
