After the Fete is Over

Carnival has just come to a close here in Trinidad and though I did not take part in the festivities – there is so much post-event cleanup to do.

Many Trinis who were not out on the streets taking part in the revelry would have chosen to go to a Carnival Camp, took a mini-vacation or may have fallen into the same category as I did – had friends and family over to your home for the entire long weekend.

For those of us in this category – I am sure that Ash Wednesday meets your home looking as if there was a World War fought – especially the bathrooms. Here are some great tips to quickly put your home to rights:

Woman At Work! Post Carnival Clean Up!

1. Call Heavenly Hands and set an appointment for us to do your post-Carnival cleanup! But seriously, here’s how to tackle what appears to be a mountain of work:
2. Go through your guest rooms and strip all the linens and leave your mattresses bare. Open the windows and give all the rooms a chance to air out.
3. If you had tons of nieces and nephews who were bunking with your progeny, let the progeny get involved. Have them strip their beds and open the bedroom windows before they leave for school ( if they are not going to school Ash Wednesday – or if you are saving this for the weekend – better for you – many hands make light work… and a hoarse voice).
4.  Once you have the bedrooms airing out – go straight for the bathrooms. Pick up all the mats that were in use over the long weekend and place them in the wash. Wipe all mirrors and clean the bathroom sink. Make a solution of bleach and water and use this to spray your shower walls – let this soak on the walls while you tackle your other tasks.  Clean out your toilet bowl. Sweep and mop your floors (you can use whatever is your favourite floor cleaner – I prefer those with that have a mild and pleasant scent).
5.  While waiting for the bathroom floors to dry, pop into the kitchen and do your dishes and wipe down the counter tops. Wipe down the refrigerator door, wipe out microwave and stove top (this is all that we are doing for now – a deeper cleaning can be done on the weekend). Sweep and mop those floors and go back to the bathrooms.
6.  In the bathrooms, rinse out your shower stalls from the bleach and water solution. Then place fresh mats on the floor. Go back to the bedrooms.
7.  In the bedrooms, place fresh sheets on the bed and sweep and mop the floors. And you are done!

This is by no means a deep and comprehensive cleaning – but I have found over the years that my entire home feels light and airy after I complete these tasks (and I have had up to 14 children ranging from ages 2 to 16 years in my home at the same time… and at least eight of them are boys!) And these tasks take no more than two hours of your time – three hours of your home is really large or really untidy.

But if you can’t see yourself going through all of this there is always point 1!

Perseverance + Passion – The Makings of A Love Story

This is the week of love (Happy Valentine’s Day!), so I felt it only fitting that I should share about what drives me – what makes me go on – what causes me to persevere:

Perseverance is an amazing thing, that determination to finish what you started. But what causes us to persevere? What makes us go on even when others have given up or say it won’t work? What makes us able to stand alone, despite negativity thrown our way?

I know for me it is passion. It is a deep love for what I do and the lives that I touch whilst doing what I do. This passion is what drives me, what fuels my day – it is what moves me to act. To act even when others would not. To act even when others say I should not.

Passion is defined as “an intense emotion compelling feeling, enthusiasm, or desire for something”. Aside: did you know that the word passion comes from the ancient Greek verb pashko which means to suffer?

So is it that I have a deep love for cleaning? By no means! What I have is a deep love for serving people, for helping them.

When we first began this journey, we wanted to create a business where women in at-risk environments would be able to access an honest and safe means of financially supporting their families. So we began with staff in mind. But in the few months since we started so many things have changed, including the perspective. It’s not about staff – it’s about everyone!

We had a client - an older woman, she was over 90 and said she needed help at home. What we actually gave her was love and support in her final days. She told us over and over about her trips to Africa. She gave us endless stories about growing up in Tobago. She regaled us with the different escapades she enjoyed with friends, most of whom, had already passed away.

It was one of our girls who was with her when she collapsed. It was our girl who rushed her to the hospital. It was our girl who had to inform her relatives of her passing.

So we persevere. We hold on and take it one day at a time. Not for the finish line, not for the bottom line – but for the now. For every person whose life we can touch right now, for every family to whom we can minister. This is our passion. This is our great love. This is why we persevere.

For anyone who has just begun or is in the middle of a great journey – I will tell you to persevere. You never know whose life you will touch. Happy Valentine’s Day people!