Spring Cleansing

The idea of spring cleaning seemed so doable when I was sitting in my bed on Saturday evening, jotting down a few to-donotes. I like to live in a some what clutter-free environment, it gives me a feeling of peace when I come home. From my closets to my mind, cleaning out the detritus, making room for more useful items. This last weekend I began my cleaning frenzy in the garage. Over the winter, empty boxes and chicken feed bags had piled up everywhere because I wasn't willing to spend any length of time in a room that was seldom above 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Multiple plastic tubs with various items I considered valuable enough to warrant taking up space in my garage. The biggest problem with any kind of spring cleaning is the time involved when looking through things, stopping to read papers, look at pictures, relive memories and probably make a phone call or two, sharing things with my sister. Setting out boxes, and a few garbage bags to accept the cast offs was the first step in this journey. A sheet laid on the floor for sorting, and dumping out boxes to sort through was also a necessity. Some decisions to discard items are easy. I really don't need six copies of a newspaper article that had a picture of the back of my son's head at a pre-school reading program in 1984, nor do I need opies of the details of eyesurgery in 1999. My recycle/burn pile was growing by leaps and ounds. It is the next pile that stops me. My son's jean jacket from his adolescent years, my daughter's favorite sparkle t-shirt, and old children's

story books that are now being held together by rubber bands. The head from my dad's hammer and his double bladed axe went into the save box. Boxes of photos with 64 years of memories went back on the shelf, as did a giant card on poster board that was signed by the students

at Saratoga High School when I left in 2004. My heart spilled over for a few minutes, with tears streaming down my face as I thought of all

those wonderful kids I spent four years getting to know and watching them go from scared freshman to mature seniors. During my journey through the tubs and boxes, I tried to keep a clear vision of what should be in this so called clutter free environment, and what would give me a

sense of peace. With sustained courage I waded into it once again, strengthened by my resolve to clean out the cobwebs. I kept things to tuck away, items that I can bring out once in a while to look at and enjoy. I made a pile, placing it directly in my van, to go to the thrift shops, and another that went directly into the dumpster. The release that comes with letting go of so much junk is not only cleansing, but I also found items that I thought were lost forever. What did I learn from this one day cleaning spree? Washing windows is a must. I only got to a few, but it really sets the tone. Moving large items and cleaning under and behind them is a must, especially in the garage. Even if you can only fit the vacuum hose behind it, it's worth it. Dust the light fixtures if you can reach them. Painting is also a great way to refresh your space. You don't have to do an entire makeover, but touching up the thresholds and wood work can brighten up your world. My favorite part of all this was putting away the snow shovel, salt and other winter gear, and bringing out the lawn chairs and event the lawn mower. When I go out to the garage now or into the laundry room, I feel good. The space is cleaned, and the floor swept. Sunshine streams through the windows and the mouse traps are empty, life is good.