The Aging Process Is Reciprocal

I was just going to bed and my feet kept sticking to the floor of my kitchen and bath. I don't know if it was the slipper or the floor, but it was driving me crazy, so I stopped and mopped the floor. Now I am awake and annoyed and remembering someone saying she just spent the day scrubbing the dirt out of the cracks in her kitchen floor on her hands and knees, (using an eyebrow brush if I recall correctly and working until the blood ran from her eyes and she could no longer rise from the job to re-enter the world of the sane.)

She may not have put it quite that way, but that is the gist of it.

If you are one of those people who are pathologically challenged to kill yourself working I have some advice for you. Don't do it. At least if you are going to do it don't be surprised if no one else notices without being told. I remember the same woman used to have a sign up in her living room that said, "Dust is a protective covering." We were soul sisters back then. I used to rely on her to wash my windows, haul the rocks out of my backyard, change the sheets and weed the garden. I still do, but it takes her ten hours to get here, so cleaning day is less frequent than it used to be.

Of course if you just enjoy the pain of masochistic working, go for it. I would never deny anyone the right to enjoy a moment to its fullest. I just can't quite envision a book called The Joy of Floor Scrubbing. Although I would be glad to try and ghost write it for her (while she bathes my dog and brushes him out.)

One of the paradoxes of growing older is fading eyesight. It makes some things hard to see and others a delight to look at. I noticed the aging process is also reciprocal. As my eyes grow dimmer, my skin looks better and better. I even have a new diet that goes, be careful what you eat, you may have to wash that dish yourself!

But back to this woman, who also had a sign in front of her toilet way back when I used to escape into the bathroom to read and let her watch our children. It said, "If you sprinkle when you tinkle, be a sweetie and wipe the seatie." We all change. I want you to know I mopped my floor at one am, with a magnetic mop head and spray wash I squirted from the handle. If it is still sticky in the morning, would you like to come for a visit?