Leo Tolstoy quipped, ”Spring is the time of plans and projects” (https://parade.com/1011745/kelseypelzer/spring-quotes/) And, Robin Williams said this about spring: "Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'" (https://parade.com/1011745/kelseypelzer/spring-quotes/) Ahhh, spring. It brings us hope as we watch tiny plants push their way through the sleepy soil and awaken us to the potential of new life, new perspectives. Spring cleaning, spring clearing, spring curating.
As you know, to ‘curate’ is to intentionally choose, to organize, and to nurture something. Getting out in yard to dig in the dirt, placing plants, airing winter-scented clothes and bed linens, putting away coats/gloves/warm hats, going through closets to assess what to keep and what to donate/discard, cleaning the house from basement to rafters. Jumping into spring is joyful and energizing, isn’t it?
When you do ‘spring cleaning,’ will you simply clean what is there, or, will you sweep out and minimize what no longer serves you? Will you also do a clearing of stale, negative, unhealthy, damaging habits and energies? Will you measure the value of relationships by keeping the ones that resonate with you and bowing out of the ones that don’t? Will you use springtime to be purposeful with cleaning, clearing, curating your possessions, your energy, your relationships?
In a Google search on the topic, ‘approaches to spring cleaning,’ about 130,000,000 results came up. Many people think of the spring cleaning process as washing windows and dusting away the pollen, cobwebs, and crumbs of our physical environment. Spring cleaning, clearing, curating, however, can go much deeper and broader than the tasks associated with addressing our physical spaces. In an article by Rich Santos, the author reports that spring is the most popular time of the year for relationships to fall apart (https://www.marieclaire.com/sex-love/a5964/breakup-calendar/). Does that surprise you? Not me. I see spring as the perfect time for new beginnings and renewed focus on what and on who matter to us, and on what no longer matters.
Spring cleaning can be so much more meaningful than simply ‘decluttering.’ Of course, decluttering and embracing minimalism can be natural outcomes of deep cleaning and clearing our spaces, our relationships, our focus so that we will curate the life we want without the ‘junk’ weighing us down. For me, physical spring cleaning flows into social media clearing, relationship clearing, philosophical clearing, energetic clearing, attitudinal clearing. Every spring, I take the opportunity to curate my passions, values, possessions, and ties to other people.
So, if you start with the physical cleaning/clearing/curating, you can review one of the 130,000,000 tips found on the Internet, or, you can look into the approaches of organizational or minimalism experts. Marie Kondo’s KonMari Method became popular a few years ago when she suggested, “ …your feelings are the standard for decision making – specifically, knowing what sparks joy. To determine this when tidying, the key is to pick up each object one at a time, and ask yourself quietly, ‘Does this spark joy? Pay attention to how your body responds. Joy is personal, so everyone will experience it differently;…a little thrill, as if the cells in your body are slowly rising” (https://konmari.com/about-the-konmari-method/). Ms. Kondo does not claim to be a minimalist; still, many of her techniques encourage minimizing. Her books and website resources will give you lots of great ideas for forming your own philosophy of cleaning, clearing, curating.
Another great cleaning, clearing, curating technique is from Margareta Magnusson, author of New York Times bestseller, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning. This intrigues me because Ms. Magnusson describes herself as, “…[being] aged between 80 and 100” (https://www.margaretamagnusson.com). Because many of our parents are in her age group, we will face cleaning, clearing out their homes when they pass, and, it can be an arduous, daunting task. From her website, here is how her technique is described: “In Sweden there is a kind of decluttering called döstädning, dö meaning ‘death' and städning meaning ‘cleaning.' This surprising and invigorating process of clearing out unnecessary belongings can be undertaken at any age or life stage but should be done sooner than later, before others have to do it for you. In The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, artist Margareta Magnusson, with Scandinavian humor and wisdom, instructs readers to embrace minimalism. Her radical and joyous method for putting things in order helps families broach sensitive conversations, and makes the process uplifting rather than overwhelming. Margareta suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you’d ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children’s art projects). Digging into her late husband’s tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go” (https://www.margaretamagnusson.com).
If your cleaning, clearing, curating involves minimizing, I suggest you check out The Minimalists on their website, in their books, in documentaries about their philosophies, and on their podcast. Their website has lots of essays, blog posts, and free resources to help you minimize when you clean, clear, curate. For example, this week on their website they posted a video about “Why Clearing the Clutter can Feel Impossible” Three decluttering tips. https://www.theminimalists.com.
There is another kind of cleaning, clearing, curating that you may not have thought about; it’s about clearing non-physical energies and entities that may have invaded your space and have attached to you and to your possessions. While this may sound a little “woo woo” at first, consider that when you move into a new house that someone else owned, some of their residual energies are left behind and you don’t want that to interfere with your home life. What about when you buy a piece of antique jewelry? It was owned by one or many other people who wore it and their energies may have collected in that item. You don’t want to incorporate their ‘vibes’ when you wear it. So, how do you clean, clear the energetic clutter negative energies and left-over entities that have attached to you, your home, your possessions? A quick Google search will share some techniques. For example, Kris Ferraro suggests “10 Easy Ways to Cleanse Your Home of Negative Energy” on her website: https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/how-to-cleanse-your-home-of-negative-energy. While there are charlatans in all walks of life, there are many people who can genuinely/effectively clean, clear your home and things so that you can continue to curate the life you want without the obstacles of negative entities and energies getting in the way. If you would like names of entity/energy clearing practitioners in the Shreveport/Bossier, Louisiana area, please email me at reimaginelife22@gmail.com. If you live elsewhere, I suggest you check with your local metaphysical shop for names of people who can help you clear negative entities/energies. Of course, you can also look online for ‘tried and true’ clearing techniques.
The special edition of Real Simple magazine, https://www.amazon.com/Real-Simple-Power-Less-Editors/dp/0848701275, called “The Power of Less,” is full of helpful cleaning, clearing, curating tips.
Spring is here and it’s bursting forth with potential for you! Clean your spaces, clear your energies, relationships, social media “friends” that are not working for you anymore. In doing so, you will feel as young, fresh, new as the lovely spring blossoms...and, you will feel the power of a well-curating life.
Happy spring cleaning, clearing, curating!
