From Cleaning to Cleansing

In early spring this year, I visited some friends in the princely city of Hyderabad in South India. I will blog about my travel experience some other time as I'd like to reserve this post for something else. One of these friends also happens to be my high-school sweetheart and I wanted to plan a surprise for him for the evening, in keeping with the Valentine's Day tradition. Chocolates, gadgets and other "material" things seemed too mainstream and boring to give to the person who charmed me out of my wits with his effervescent personality. So, I took a cue from the American home-improvement reality show, "While You Were Out", to give my Valentine some well deserved change.

Now, getting access to his bachelor pad was the easiest of my tasks. Attacking the living room and kitchen was going to be a serious ordeal! Take a look:-

Kitchen: cooking area

The modular kitchen in itself is fantastic but for the clutter and grime it has to put up with. My innamorato is fond of cooking and his favourite dish is rajma-chawal (kidney beans with rice). His overflowing love for curries ensures that the rajma he cooks flows out of the pressure cooker and irrevocably coats the stainless steel body of the cooker with its thick, brown liquid. The exhibit above was cooked a fortnight before this picture was taken. Due to the unfortunate fact that my beau works so hard at office on weekdays and plays on his Xbox or watches football on the telly when he's home, the dirty cooker remains forgotten.

Kitchen: sink

Even the washed utensils (all credits to the cleaning lady who is seen once in two weeks) don't find a  place in the empty shelves below the granite counter.

Drawing Room: View-A

The ultra-minimalistic living room has to lose that title, thanks to the ugly cartons that rule the roost. I have always wondered why 3 men with similar tastes in television have to have 3 separate TVs in their respective bedrooms while the drawing room showcases the giant cartons.

Drawing Room: View-B

Throw in more cartons for a washing machine and 3 separate set-top-boxes for good measure, and you can rest assured the dust-bunnies will have a field day!

Drawing Room: View-C

Guys love their freedom and they like to extend the freedom to assorted pizza-flyers with discount coupons that have expired and take-away menus that lie on the showcase cabinet instead of inside.

Taking in the herculean task that lay ahead of me, I took a deep breath and rolled up my sleeves. I began by swallowing my pride and scrubbing the wok. It's amazing how cleaning can rejuvenate you from within. I played soft music on my phone and sang along to keep sloth away. With every stain I washed, I felt my sins wash away (not that I've committed too many grave sins :-P ). It helped me understand that over time, even things that I expect will make me happy, may leave me stained. And with the weeks that pass, the stains will only harden and mar my beauty (referring to inner beauty here). But it is never too late to make some changes in my life and turn over a new leaf. I may have imperfections and ways that need mending, but I also have the power to clean the dirt and grime and cleanse my soul. Clearing up the clutter helped me clear up my thoughts and organize my mind. All the scrubbing, washing, wiping, dusting, stacking, arranging and rearranging was so therapeutic! By the end of my project, I had a neat little surprise ready to greet my date for the evening:-

Kitchen: cooking area

A squeaky-clean kitchen-top with a stove that sparkled. All the cutlery and cooking ingredients arranged to maximize space utilization.

Kitchen: sink

Washed utensils rested in peace inside half a dozen drawers. The kitchen-sink was disinfected and human-safe. And, all the trash was shoved down the garbage-chute.

Drawing Room: View-A

The cardboard boxes that were an eye-sore, were lifted and moved across the hall . . .

Drawing Room: View-B

to the other side where each was stacked atop the other to erect a compact, tolerable structure. The beauty and simplicity of the hall could now be admired. I created enough space in the room to convert it into a dance-floor. Oh, what wouldn't I give to waltz about in this room! (I know very well that this will now be used to play cricket. Sigh!)

Drawing Room: View-C

The unsightly bits of paper and plastic were stashed out of sight inside the shelves. And there was not a trace of dust in the room!

I stood there, pregnant with emotion at the wonder I had created. I knew this would only last a couple of days as filth has a way of creeping into our lives without us noticing it. But I was content with the knowledge that I had done my bit that day and would do so time and again to keep the world clean. The sound of a key unlocking the front door brought me out of my reverie. It was him! :-)

I know he loved the surprise because he took me to this beautiful place called Cinnamon Fusion for dinner. There was live music and a 7-course meal of innovative and top notch dishes!