I’m a messy person. Actually, messy is an understatement. Two weeks into summer vacation it will look like a tornado went through my room. My desk will be covered in papers, bags, video game controllers, the leftover crap in my pockets after a night out. And my closet, my closet is a whole different story, but that thing will be spewing clothes and shoes out onto my bedroom floor.

Day in and day out my mom comes into my room and just looks around before pleading with me to clean up, and I always tell her that I will. And I really will, eventually, just not right now.

What she doesn’t understand and what a lot of people don't understand is that even though my room looks like a bomb went off in it, it’s still functional and I know exactly where everything is. I know where my keys and wallet are, I know where my shoes are, I know where my sunglasses are, I know where everything is. Everything is placed ever so gently exactly where I want it. (Sarcasm, I most likely tossed it across the room as I entered.)

What looks like a disaster to you is my own organized mess.

Does it bother me that my room is a big mess? Yes, sometimes it does. That's when I finally clean up, and when I’m done, I have to admit, I feel pretty proud of myself. I managed to get my disaster of a room standing at attention. However, that doesn't last long and soon enough my room is flipped back upside down.

We’re all messy in our own ways, some peoples desks are piled high with papers and folders, others back seats look like a black hole filled with shoes, hoodies, bottles, and wrappers. I just happen to have a room that’s always in shambles. But I never lose anything and I never misplace anything because I know exactly where I put, or threw, whatever it is that I'm looking for. It’s a mess, but it’s an organized mess.

So, in conclusion, Mom, I know my room is a mess. I promise I'll clean it, but I think we all know it’ll be a mess again in a few short days, and I’ll clean it again and again and continue the never-ending battle and cycle of trying to keep my room clean for more than a few days, or hours.