Spring Cleaning 101

Way back in the late 1900’s, when our cubs still lived with us and I only thought I knew what tired felt like, I used to spring clean. Every April. I’d dedicate a whole day to each room, one day after the other, until I’d made my way from one end of our home to the other. And boy, did I have a system!

Step 1: Starting as early in the morning as possible, put supper in the crock pot and crank up some inspiring music. Find a garbage bag for discard items and a box for donations.

Step 2: Strip the room of everything you can carry. Pictures, lamps, books, ornaments—all go to a different room. Anything that can go through the washer—curtains, blankets, cushions, throw rugs—does, and then hangs on the clothesline the rest of the day.

Step 3: If the room includes cupboards, closets, or drawers, do those first, one at a time. Empty, clean, replace contents in a tidy fashion.

Step 4: Go around wiping down walls, windows, baseboards, light fixtures, furniture, and finally, the floor. At this point maybe rearrange furniture for something different.

Step 5: One by one, clean each item taken out of that room and return it to its place. Except, of course, discards and donations.

Step 6: Return the items from the clothesline to their rightful places. Haul out the trash and load the donation box into the car. Call it a day. Enjoy supper and a clean room. (Until the cubs tramp through with muddy feet … or squish a mosquito on the wall … or press noses up against windows.)

My system was ingenious, really. An effective cure for which there is no known disease.

Then the cubs left and found dens of their own. We moved. Springs began to come around faster and faster. One day I realized I couldn’t remember the last time I’d performed my annual ritual.

This year, with nowhere to go, I devised a plan to tackle the spring cleaning once again. I counted rooms and Saturdays. If I started in mid-February and devoted one Saturday to each room, I could finish by the May long weekend when it’ll be time to focus on garden and yard work. I even allowed myself two Saturdays for the kitchen.

By the end of my first Saturday, I’d finished four cupboards and felt like I’d lost a wrestling match with Mr. Clean. And that was with a nap. Twenty cupboards remained, not to mention the fridge and stove. At this rate, spring cleaning would take me all year. Granny warned me old age ain’t no place for sissies.

The next Saturday, I cleaned about half the remaining cupboards. I was never this stiff and sore at the end of my cleaning sessions back in the day.

The third Saturday, I finished the kitchen and vowed never to clean my oven—or any oven—again, as long as I live. SO not worth it. (By the way, “Cleanliness is next to godliness” is NOT from the Bible.)

I moved on to the bathroom the next Saturday and felt a bit less weary afterward. Do you think my stamina is increasing?

Last Saturday, I tackled the living/dining room. Since the furniture in that room is “one arrangement only,” I told hubby I’d love fresh flowers for the table and then said, “Oh, what a nice surprise!” when he brought some home.

If I survive the rest of my spring cleaning, I think I’ll create a new, one-step system: When the urge to clean surfaces, lie down until the urge goes away.

Psalm 51:10. “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”