Clean sweep...?

I've recently been organizing my past writings to see what's there, decide whether or not to keep it, and then sorting it all into a spreadsheet. Here's a snippet about my writing process that I found from 2006. It still holds true.

Sometimes, right in the middle of a sentence or paragraph, I’ll click the Save icon, push out my rolling chair, and go grab the broom, putting paid to the dirt that’s been sticking to my bare feet since yesterday. Now, it might look like I’m not writing when I sweep that crumby floor, but that’s not necessarily the case. I often find I need to take a break from the work in order to let an idea or new awareness “float around” and sort itself out within me. Sometimes I’m searching for the word or feeling or memory needed for the work at hand, and performing a familiar, simple task can help me enter the meditative sort of space where I’ll find what I need.

On the other hand, it is also possible that those simple, repetitive tasks are serving a very different role. They might be the distraction that allows me to avoid the work when I don’t want to make myself focus on digging and thinking to find the words and meanings the work demands. And I have to admit that even writing a little snippet like this essayette can serve the same evil dastardly purpose.

The trick is to continue learning the difference. The broom or laundry basket could be either the angel or the devil on my shoulder. It’s up to me to figure out which it is at any given moment.