SPRING CLEANING

Growing up in the Midwest, in a family of hard workers with strong ideas of right and wrong, I could always count on one thing. Every year the arrival of Spring meant something important: Cleaning Out. Cleaning Up. 

Almost an "off with the old and on with the new" attitude. But not quite.

Houses were swept, scrubbed, and polished until every surface mirrored my face and the fragrance of lavender greeted me every time I came home from school.

Furniture appeared in back yards--not for sale, but for airing.

Clotheslines sagged with heavy bedspreads, wool blankets, small-to-medium sized rugs. Also for airing.

Eventually, after the furniture and other household linens were back in place, out came our winter clothing. Once the wool jackets, coats, and sweaters appeared on the clotheslines, we knew it really was Spring. None of those things would be worn again until cold weather appeared, probably in November. (And you were on your own if you felt cold before the official date of hauling out woolies.)

In those days, not much was thrown away. "Make it do or do without" wasn't just an attitude of the Yankees of New England--it was the difference between having a sufficient something until money again became available to replace it. And, it was a matter of pride.

So I don't recall much of the old stuff going out and being replaced by new stuff. I do recall folks reusing clothing--cutting out the good parts of old suits to make a child's coat, for example. (Clearly, recycling is not a new concept.)

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Fast forward to today--yes, we recycle; been doing that officially for a couple of decades. We've had to re-learn the "make it do" philosophy during a year of COVID, especially when it came to having enough paper products or canned goods.

Then there's another category of Spring Cleaning: our attitudes.

There's a lot--a whole lot--of stuff in the news about diversity, racism, social justice, and more. We're encouraged to think of others. Help those who are having a hard time. If you can't donate money or goods, how about giving a kind word? Or a smile? Or just letting somebody in line ahead of you at the checkout when they have three items and you have a cartful?

It's been a while since I took my attitudes out for an airing--got them down off the shelf and dusted them, rubbed them with a cloth and some fragrant dusting spray to make them shine again. Maybe take them outside and hang them on a drying rack (no clotheslines around here) in the sun and breeze. I think it's time. And Spring is as good a time as any.

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Without our help, Nature comes along and does a super job of Renewal. Every year. Without fail. 

The church encourages Renewal--Easter is a grand celebration of the power of new life.

We can do it, too. It doesn't have to be expensive or labor intensive. How about it?