I have no scrub brush, no feather duster, no complicated set of tools. I use paper towels, spray cleaner and what used to be known as “elbow grease.” Yesterday, I attacked the bathroom armed only with these. I scrubbed, wiped and polished. Weeks of travel and activities had taken their toll and I removed layers of dust, mildew and soap scum. This morning’s reward is a newborn bathroom with fluffy rugs and hair in the hairbrush, where it belongs.

The kingdom of clean. It is smooth and crisp and cool to the touch. Sometimes, in our house, it’s as faraway as a fairytale. But I like to go there sometime, even as a tourist.