Multiple Random Objects: Clutter in my mind reflects my bedside drawer

“Out of clutter, find simplicity.”
― Albert Einstein

I've been tossing and turning in my bed for the past hour.  As a part of healthier, happier me, I've pledged to sleep at least 8 hours every night.  BUT, because I spent an enormous amount of time resting today, I am not properly exhausted at bedtime and my mind turns to overdrive hashing out all crap in my life in the attempt to turn it into unicorns and rainbows.

I finally gave up about five minutes ago and turned on my bedside lamp.  I opened the nightstand drawer in hopes of finding a pen to start slashing out pro/con lists and found (among other things) these random objects:

In my nightstand, I have a weird black glove, a rubber bouncy ball, a ROCK, a CAR charger, a plastic spoon, a magnetic clip, a drawer knob (that doesn't match any of my furniture), a broken kids' clothing hanger and a weird joiner thing that looks like something I might need for something electric.  There were also post-it notes, user manuals, a battery charger, a few random books and a rice-filled flannel warmer but I didn't feel like pulling all those things out to clutter my bed for the picture.

My nightstand drawer is a reflection of my mind.  I have a bunch of useless, random crap cluttering it up and I can't seem to throw it out.  WHY do I have a BROKEN hanger in my nightstand drawer?  The better question might be:  WHY DID I JUST PUT IT BACK?

I keep things far after they've outlived their usefulness.  I DO eventually get rid of unused objects but sometimes they hang out in my life longer than they need to before I finally get the nerve to clear them out.  They make me feel bad while they're around but still I cling to them.

Albert Einstein said "Out of clutter, find simplicity."  OK, Einstein, here goes:

• Get rid of it.  The simplest thing is to dump it.  The WHOLE THING.  I had no idea what was in my top nightstand drawer because I NEVER OPEN IT.  I probably never open it because there is nothing in there I need.  All I need in that drawer is a pad of paper, a pen and a flashlight.  That's it.  Simple.
• What does it mean?  Clutter in my drawer really does reflect clutter in my mind.  I read recently (and I'm not EVEN going to tell you where I read it because it's terribly embarrassing...do NOT look it up!) "Messy bed, messy head."  It's so TRUE.  If my bed is unmade it usually means that I'm in a bad place emotionally.  If my bed is made, then usually I'm a pretty happy person.  That cluttered nightstand drawer?   It must go.  Maybe it will be the whole key to clearing out the things that are bugging me in my life.  And then I can sleep.
• Does it make a me a bad person to have a cluttered nightstand drawer?  Here's the thing:  when you see a beautiful spread in Better Homes & Gardens, you see brightly lit homes filled with fresh flowers and beautiful throws artfully placed with books neatly stacked in bookcases.  Do those people REALLY LIVE THAT WAY?  Maybe.  But, if so, I probably don't want to know them.  People HAVE clutter. EVERYONE has clutter.  Some have a little.  Some have WAY too much.  But if you're living a big life, you don't have time to keep everything immaculate all the time.  My cluttered drawer doesn't make me bad.  It makes me normal.  

My closets need cleaning.  My bathrooms need scrubbing.  My dogs need bathing.  My ceiling fans need dusting.  And my life needs a little polishing.  I'm working on it.  I don't know that I'll ever NOT be working on it.  But, boy, I try ALL THE TIME.

Now, where's that pen???