Vacuuming…Not Just for Hoover Anymore

By Mary Grace Musuneggi

When most women hear the word vacuuming, they initially think of their Hoover or Dyson. Vacuuming brings up visions of removing unwanted stuff off of their floors and carpets. But vacuuming also means emptying a space of everything. There is a natural law that says “nature hates a vacuum.” It simply means if you remove something from a space, nature will fill the space with something else. For instance, pour water out of a glass and as the water flows out, air flows in.

Another natural law that goes with this is “two things cannot fit in the same place at the same time.” You can’t fill the glass with water and fill it with air.

But the importance of these laws relates more to how we fill up our lives. Too many of us have filled our lives with things that are not good or valuable. We have closets full of ill-fitting, outdated clothes. We have uncomfortable home furnishings. Our living space is cluttered and disorganized. We have bad financial situations, bad debts. We are in unhappy or abusive relationships. We work a job that is unsuitable for us or brings us no satisfaction.

So if two things can’t fit in the same place at the same time, how can we bring in better clothes or better home furnishings? A better job? Happy and loving relationships?

We can’t make room for the good until we have vacuumed out the bad. When the space is cleared to make room for something better, nature will fill the void.

We need to ask ourselves, “Does this person, place, thing, outfit, career, situation, fit the design I have for my life?” If you were writing the script for your life, could you say that you have assembled the right characters, scenery, and costumes to make it a smashing success? If not, create vacuums.

Now it certainly may be easy enough to vacuum out a worn pair of shoes or an old sweater. But what about relationships? Friendships?

One of my favorite quotes is by Steve Maraboli as he reminds us:

“Let go of the people who dull your shine, poison your spirit, and bring you drama. Cancel your subscription to their issue.”

So ask yourself if the people who fill up your space actually bring you joy, make you a better you, support your efforts, cheer you on, and allow you to be who you really want to be. If not…get out your Hoover and vacuum.