I have a special gift

I don’t like to brag… No, I do like to brag. But it’s rude, so I try not to. There’s one thing I do brag about, though, and that’s my special gift. Here it is: I can sit in my house, surrounded by dirty dishes, piles of unfolded washing, stuff all over the floor, and I can concentrate on work. Almost everyone I explain this special gift to tends to think I’m joking or being self-deprecating. Then they get to know me and visit my house, so they know it’s true. They always say, “Oh, I just can’t sit down if there are dirty dishes to be done. The house has to be tidy before I’ll work. And I’ll tidy instead of working. There’s no way I could do that, I really couldn’t”. That’s how I know it’s a special gift.

But they don’t say it in an impressed way. Usually they say it in a slightly disgusted way. I can tell they’re picturing my messy house and wondering why I sound proud of myself. It’s not that I’m proud exactly, more that I’m not at all embarrassed. I don’t see why my house needs to be clean and tidy; it’s messy, not disease-ridden. If the washing pile fell on one of the children when they were younger it would have been a serious hazard, but they’re both strong enough to dig themselves out these days.

I work from home and I love it. Most people will tell you that working from home doesn’t work well for two reasons. The first is loneliness and the second is that there are too many distractions. I don’t get lonely and my special gift is ignoring distractions. I definitely get distracted sometimes, but not by housework. The choice between doing the dishes and doing something that helps me make money is an easy one. I understand that the dishes need to be done so I’ve come up with strategies to do them: when people call me for long conversations (I’m looking at you Jasmine), I get up and do the dishes.

But when I work, I really focus. I don’t think about the dishes, I often lose track of time, and I forget to eat. That’s my special gift at work. And at the end of the month, I have my special gift to thank for paying the mortgage.