The Messages of Messes

Living in a small apartment with five children means that everywhere is always messy during waking hours. Mostly I’ve come to accept this. We clean up at certain times and while things may creep under - and stay under - the couch, almost everything is put away at bedtime.

The messes that occur with the rising of my children in the morning have hidden messages about my children if I stop to read them.

The colored pencils that are always on the floor remind me how the six year old loves to color - and the four and two year olds love to dump them out.

The train tracks entertain the growing two year old who tries to build a track and loves to pull the train along.

The toy animals everywhere is because my four year old has developed a great interest in animals.

The dress up things laid neatly on display tells me that my six year old is not into Disney princesses anymore, but still loves to dress up. I can also see that while she is free-spirited, she now has a  desire for order and neatness.

The piles of books on the always disorganized bookshelves reminds me that my almost 10 year old is now an avid reader, when less than two years ago, he struggled to read.

The many notebooks tucked away remind me of my quiet almost 12 year old who loves to write and yet is so private about it (and most things).

Loud and clear, these messes articulate the growth that is happening in our sweet little home. My children are growing up. It’s more noticeable in my little kids, because they aren’t quite as little. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Will I enjoy clear floors one day? Sure, but at the same time I’ll be waiting for the day when my grandchildren come and leave pencils, train tracks, and books all over the floor.

This post is part of a blog hop with Exhale—an online community of women pursuing creativity alongside motherhood, led by the writing team behind Coffee + Crumbs. Click here to view the next post in the series "Still Motherhood".