Monday Morning Motivator: I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW, THE RAIN IS GONE...

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW, THE RAIN IS GONE...

"...I can see all the obstacles in my way, gone are the dark clouds that had me blind, It's gonna be a bright, bright Sun-Shiny day..."

I always loved that song written and sung by Johnny Nash - and it popped into my head this morning when I found myself amazed by the extreme bright "blueness" of the sky. I'm sure it's been that color before, maybe even bluer, but I guess it had faded from my memory with gray having been the predominant shade for so long. "Boy, is it clear," I said out loud to Willa (our Golden Retriever). She thumped her tail and gave a little whimper, eager to get out in all that "blueness." (Can dogs see blue?) Then I started thinking about the word, "clarity" - the opposite of "clutter," right? And how easy it is to lose it. "Dark clouds" in the form of the emotional and physical debris we pack around ourselves blind us to the possibilities that a whole new season, when everything in nature has the chutzpah to begin again...can bring.

So what do we do? Here's the two word answer: Let go. Let go of all the unused or overused "stuff" we've piled up during the last year (or more) - the too tight sweaters, the too small view of ourselves, the mismatched socks, the single gloves (I know it's leather....throw it out anyway) the keys with no locks, the make-up from your "old" look, the stuff in your medicine chest (like old meds for old diseases (bad karma....)

And what about the old doubts? The old fears - of failing, of looking foolish, of just plain messing up? The fear that maybe somebody isn't going to "like" you, buy your act, give you the nod? How about letting go of anything - from old rugs to old grudges - that you don't want to pass on to the people you love....?

Okay, this is the time of year I always ask people to "throw out fifty things” which is the name of my last book. Why fifty? Because when you actually get rid of 50 things - the keys, the anger, the lip liner (that isn't a color found in nature)...something comes over you. You get your energy and optimism back. And then you ask yourself this question: "Hey, if I could do that, what else could I do?" And you realize you're free. Free to create anything you want - including the next great, bright, sun-shiny chapter of your life.

Oh, I forgot to mention, magazines and catalogs only count as one thing... But that's okay, to help you make it to “fifty,” you can download the free "Throw Out Fifty Things Workbook" from my website and order a copy of Throw Out Fifty Things: Clear the Clutter, Find Your Life. from Amazon. Together, they'll get you there.

And as you're tossing, donating and recycling (except for the grudges) you can sing along with Johnny...

“Look all around, there’s nothin’ but blue skies, Look straight ahead, there’s nothin’ but blue skies...."