Lessons Learnt From Cleaning Toilets
Marisha Ida Fonseca
22 March 2009, 14:12This year, due to some changes in my family, I was made the official cleaner of the toilet and the bathroom. It wasn’t fun having to devote my Sunday afternoons in cleaning the walls, floor tiles and commode, but, I’ve learnt some lessons in ‘social change’ from it.
You can’t see the dirt standing up:
You won’t know if the lower part of the walls are clean if you stand up. You have to bend down and look at them. Similarly, you won’t know what’s going on in society if you remain in your comfortable home. You’ve got to move yourself and look at the undercurrents of the world.
The dirt doesn’t come out easily:
You have to rub and scrub. You need a strong pair of arms for this. In the same way, social problems aren’t solved easily, and it’s only the strong, the strong minded, strong hearted and strong souled who can solve them.
Use effective instruments:
Toilets can be cleaned only with strong soap, not bathing soap. Social change can be brought about by certain effective instruments. You will waste a lot of time and energy if you don’t use the right tools.
A Spoonful of Sugar helps the Medicine Go Down:
Smile while you work. Work isn’t always fun, but if can always be MADE fun. You will take twice as long if you’re grumpy and complaining.
And finally- This isn’t a One Time Effort:
Toilets keep getting dirty, no matter how much you clean them. You can’t clean them once and assume they will stay clean for the rest of the year. When tackling social issues, you need to go beyond a single visit, signature campaign etc. Begin well, and keep up the good work!
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