Are you a lone wolf?

I'm on my tippy toes at No Frills, Prince's banger Kiss is playing in the background*, I'm trying to reach the last package of No Name sesame rice crackers which is just out of reach and I'm weighing my options.

Do I:

A) climb on the bottom shelf precariously to get closer?
B) give up and forgo the crunchy companion to my garlic hummus?
C) make myself vulnerable and ask a vertically blessed stranger for help?

What would you do?

I think we have this myth of the lone wolf. That it's something to strive for, to be independent, to not need anyone, to be totally and completely self sufficient.

Why? Do we get extra points for doing it alone? Nope. Does it make things harder? OMG yes.

We look at the people around us who are really productive, and it looks like they are self sufficient but I'll bet you my beloved stuffed bees that each and every one of them has support of some kind in their lives.

"Lone wolf is kind of a myth, most wolves like to be in packs"
drawing by the wonderful Catriona Sturton F Clutter Club participant, musician and artist

I looked up lone wolf on Wikepedia and it says:

"A lone wolf is a wolf that lives independently rather than with others as a member of a pack. Lone wolves are typically either older female wolves driven from the pack...

Lone wolves have difficulty hunting the wolves' favorite prey: large ungulates, which are troublesome for a single wolf to bring down alone. Instead, lone wolves generally hunt smaller animals and scavenge carrion, and scent mark their territory less frequently than other wolves.

Very few wolves remain lone wolves."

It doesn't sound so great. Driven from the pack. Can't eat your favourite food. You have to survive on smaller prey and you don't own your territory. Sounds like a small existence. Lone wolves do exists but very few wolves remain lone wolves.

I've definitely been guilty of lone wolfing it. Whether it's reaching for something at the grocery store or making things happen in my life I've struggled for months by myself and sometimes years feeling stuck. I've felt despair, lonely, like a loser and very sorry for myself.

But you know what? As soon as I ask for help, as soon as I open myself to support, things start to move. It's vulnerable and it's scary to take that step but I never regret it. Sometimes it's as simple as stating my intention to another human being or asking for some practical support like help reaching crackers.

I'll admit that the "asking for help" thing doesn't always come naturally to me but I've been working on it lately.

In fact at this very moment I am not doing this alone. I'm on a video work date with a stranger as write this email to you so I stay focused and off facebook. Do I teach what I need to learn? Why yes I do!

You don't need to lone wolf it either at least when it comes to clutter clearing and making your life amazing because I've created the 3 month F Clutter Club just for you.

There will be group coaching and clutter clearing calls, I'll set you up with a clutter clearing buddy if you like, there's a facebook group and throughout you'll have me cheering you on for three whole months. There are already many beautiful peeps signed up.

And don't worry if you don't have a lot of clutter to clear or if the thought of clearing clutter for three months is tiring. You can use the Club to do anything that you've been putting off. That includes self care and creativity. It's just as important to take time to consciously care for yourself (instead of mindlessly doom scrolling the news) as it is to take time to be productive.

Click HERE to find out more and join. Registration closes on Monday January 11th at midnight.

What can you do to join the pack and get some support? Where have you been struggling on your own? Let me know by hitting reply.

Sending lots of love and I want you to know that I'm always here for support if you need me.

Love,
Cecilia
ox

*p.s. I LOVE the music at No Frills. I've started several dance parties, usually in the organics aisle, at No Frills.

Clutter Clearing During a Pandemic

Hey, it's Cecilia. Today I want to talk to you about clearing clutter in a pandemic.

I've been actually thinking about this a lot since things started shutting down in March. At that time I thought about running a clutter clearing challenge and I very quickly nixed that idea because it was such a huge upheaval. I mean, unless you're very old, I don't imagine any have been through a global pandemic before. This is new for everyone. And in March it was really new.

What happens when things are very stressful, when there's a lot of stress and intensity, it can make it much harder to let go. I’ve talked before about the idea that sometimes things in your life make it easier to let go and other times things in our lives push us more towards holding on. And definitely something like a global pandemic is going to push us more towards holding on.

So if you had the intention this spring to clear clutter and you weren't able, to that's okay. It's normal. You're a human being.

Another thing that I want to say about this is that if you are experiencing extra stress, like you just lost your job, you just lost a loved one, you work in the healthcare industry, your business is struggling, etc... I want to invite you to have some tenderness and care for yourself at this time.

If clutter clearing was on your list in 2020 and it didn't happen, that's okay. I've said this many times, clutter clearing is a luxury. Unless you are in some kind of hoarding situation, for most of us clutter clearing is an indication of our abundance. We have too much stuff and it's not necessary. If life is really stressful right now, there’s no need to add more.

Now I want to talk to the people who are sort of in a new normal as far as the pandemic and 2020 is concerned. Things are okay, maybe they're even great, and you're looking around and you’re noticing some piles and you’re feeling ready to start cleaning them up.

(I have to admit, I hid a few piles before shooting this video. FYI Piles are normal. Things build up and then we clean them up, and they get messy again and we clean them up.)

I was listening to a Brené Brown podcast recently, and she was talking about how during this time, it can be helpful to do little projects around the house that give us a sense of satisfaction. I have to say that I agree. This May I found great satisfaction when took all the random bags of bulk food that I had in a big bin on top of my fridge and moved them into mason jars with labels.

Is there a little corner that you could choose to bring some order to? Don't choose the whole house, just a little corner in your house that you can organize or clean up to give you a sense of control when everything else out of control: the US election, systemic anti-black racism, fires, pandemic, children at home when they're usually at school.

2020 is 2020-ing us big time.

Things are crazy out there, but can you make a little space in your home? When you can do that, when you can make a little space in your home, the hope is you can also make a little space inside yourself.

If you're ready to clear clutter, I invite you to join my 3-Month F Clutter Club that starts Wednesday January 13th, 2021 and registration closes January 11th at midnight. There's something really powerful about clearing clutter in community, supporting each other with kindness and compassion. You don't have to do it alone.

Lots of love and F Clutter,
Cecilia

Love, Love, Love

Hello you! You know what? I am so incredibly grateful for you. You are brave, you are inspiring and I’m in awe of how you challenge yourself on a daily basis. Sure, some days the challenge is getting out of bed and having a shower. That’s ok because there are also the days where you slay dragons and rescue royalty and sometime’s even rescue yourself.

It’s Valentine’s Day (or Galentine’s Day/Palentine’s Day if that’s more your speed) and I wanted to take a moment to say that I love you and appreciate you deeply.

I also have a question for you.

How do you love and appreciate yourself?

It could be a big thing or a small thing and I’d love to hear it in the comments below (I have a comments section that works, that’s so exciting!)

Today I loved myself by listening to music and dancing in the bathroom while I got ready. I’m also feeling deep appreciation for myself for creating this new website. Go me!

Sending so much love to you!

Love,

Cecilia

p.s. I’d love for you to join my love filled email list. You can go ahead and do that below: