Even if you’ve never stepped foot inside a temple, you’ve likely seen one in a film or magazine. Large or small, rich or poor, urban or rural, all temples have one striking thing in common: strict adherence to housekeeping rituals. When cleaning rituals are consistent, and non-negotiable, spaces look clean and calm. If you’ve always wondered how to get the temple look, read on:
Remember to Remove your Shoes
Temples, other houses of worship, and many holistic health practitioners have strict rules about where outdoor shoes belong. They will place small polite signs on their entrance door, or on the floor mats asking you to remove your shoes. Some places offer paper slippers or other slip-on footwear for your convenience. In some cultures, it has always been customary to remove outdoor shoes at the door of a home whereas in North America, it’s less common. But removing outdoor shoes stops you and your guests from tracking dirt, mud, or worse (animal feces) through your home. Plus, removing outdoor shoes before entering your home makes cleaning the floors a much easier chore.
Only Eat and Drink in the Kitchen
Although comparing a temple to a busy home is like comparing apples and oranges, we can learn quite a bit about cleanliness and order from the rules that are observed there. For those of us with children under our roofs, we’d be wise to follow the ‘no food unless it’s in the kitchen’ policy. Allowing kids to eat in their bedrooms opens the door to all manner of disaster and unhygienic habits. No parent or caregiver deserves to find bowls caked with week old half-eaten oatmeal or unfinished egg sandwiches shoved under a bed frame. Popcorn and drinks in the TV room sounds like a fair compromise but we highly encourage you to draw the line there.
Please Pick Up Garbage
For those of us who are neat freaks, it’s pretty much impossible to understand how people leave garbage to rot in their cars, on coffee tables or on the kitchen counter. In a temple, there are garbage bins in the bathrooms and outside the main doors. The rule of thumb is that if you see garbage anywhere it doesn’t belong, you clean up. These days, disposing of our waste is a bit complicated, you wonder if it’s recyclable, compostable or sadly, just landfill bound. Attach cue cards or other labels on your bins to remind young children what goes where, and if you don’t know whether an item is meant for the garbage or the blue box, check your municipality website.
Whether you live in a cozy rented space or a lavish villa, having a clean and organized home can make your space seem larger and enrich your living experience. Contact your local MOLLY MAID today!
Photo by skeeze/12152 images
