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I trained myself to do that after years of bemoaning how out of control I felt in my environment. Now it is almost automatic to hang up my coat, put my keys in their little ceramic container, and stow away the recent shopping purchases. My apartment is usually neat and pleasing to me. It feeds my need to control the things I can. My motivation is primarily aesthetic. My mind and spirit are calmed when things are in order.

My office? Another adage seems to fit: A clean desk is a sign of a sick mind. According to AI, this saying suggests “that excessive tidiness may indicate a lack of creativity or an overly rigid mindset, contrasting with the idea that a cluttered workspace can foster innovation and free thinking.”

Thus, we arrive at my favorite spectrum—both/and, as opposed to either/or! I need order and beauty in my living space. That need is countered by the piles of notes and files, articles and books that feed my writing and planning.

I comfort myself with the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who said, “Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” I think about chaos theory, which admits that large systems are reliable but not predictable. That’s something I know applies to me much of the time.