Orderliness

"Orderliness is being neat, and living with a sense of harmony. It is having a place for things you use and keeping them there so that you can use them whenever you need to. It means planning something so that it works, doing something step by step, staying on track instead of going in circles. When you appreciate the order of creation, you can see the beauty and harmony in all living things."

-excerpts from the Virtues cards with permission from The Virtues Project™

A New Year, time for reflection on the past, the present, and the future. How do I want to live my life this year? What are my priorities? How do I want to be in my work, in my relationships? How do I want to be in the world? In reflecting on these questions, I know that Virtues will be my anchor and my hope. I am drawn to many Virtues to help me answer meaningful questions and to determine my course. In 2002, I am drawn to Creativity and Beauty, Peacefulness and Trust, Moderation and Gentleness. I want all of these Virtues in my life and I will call on them, try to remember and practice them.

The Virtue of Orderliness keeps calling to me. I am trying to make Orderliness my friend. It is my nemesis and my heart's desire. If I can accomplish Orderliness, all else will follow. I have been intimately involved with Orderliness for about five years, trying to achieve order in my office, being frustrated by endless piles of papers, taking baby steps. I am creating order, and therefore beauty and peacefulness in my home. I delight in noticing the order in the universe, relishing the beauty in nature. I am setting my house in order, prioritizing the most important things in my life to live my life with purpose and meaning. I love this Virtue of Orderliness, even though it is a very difficult one for me.

Questions for reflection:

1. What Virtues call to me in 2002?
2. What Virtues are my anchor?
3. What Virtues are my hope?
4. What Virtues help me live my life with purpose and meaning?

January 4, 2002