"Did you put the remote control in its proper place before you left the house?" my mother-in-law asked me as we arrived at her place for a visit.
"Yes!" I said!
I was pleased she had asked.
She knows me only too well.
You see, I have this little ritual before I leave the house.
Not only does the remote have to be facing the TV, but it has to be parallel on the living room side table.
And not only that, but the beds have to be made, the kitchen has to be clean, the dishes put away, the litter boxes cleaned, the slippers out of sight, the floors swept, the dining room chairs aligned straightly, extending approximately six inches from the table, the towels hanging straight.
You get the picture.
I feel it is a projection of Feng Shui, the ancient oriental art of energy orientation.
There must be something to it.
The belief is that good energy swirls around order and cleanliness.
And that bad energy is brought forth by clutter and disorganization.
Thousands of years of believing in such a thing can't be wrong!
I am simply doing my part to encourage "good energy" to swirl around our home.
My office.
My volunteer duties.
Some people say I am a Type "A" personality.
I definitely hope that I am not.
Perhaps that stands for "Annoying."
I prefer to believe that I simply have a mild case of OCD.
I was dismayed to learn, after watching an episode of Dr. Oz, that having the urge to align things symmetrically, can be a symptom of OCD.
Obsessive compulsive disorder is the technical term.
I do not feel that I have any sort of disorder.
I simply like things in their place.
A place for everything, and everything in its place, no?
The universe aligns when everything is aligned, yes?
Those closest to me have told me they believe my tendency to want things in their place has been heightened recently.
The flower vase on the dining table has to be centered.
The toilet seat lids have to be closed.
The shoe mats have to be perpendicular.
The shoes themselves have to be aligned and not willy-nilly.
I don't think I am asking too much.
I think that if more people were slightly more concerned about the positive flow of energy around organized objects, there might be more positive energy in the world!
Just a thought.
It makes me happy to have order.
To have everything in its place.
And I am proud to perhaps have a small "disorder" that promotes "order".
I think it is quite ironic, in fact.
As I put the dishes away.