Spring Cleaning

May 21, 2014

Goodbye to the frigid and snowy days of winter and welcome to warmer days of spring. Hello to the chirping birds, blooming flowers and kids playing outside. And yes, welcome to the annual event of spring-cleaning too. For some, this means cleaning everything that has been left untouched over the winter months and for others, this is when items at home are deemed either worthy of keeping or better served in the circular file and donation bins. This deliberate spring-cleaning effort of pausing and thinking about what to do with each item, for me, is metaphorical to my emotional spring-cleaning. 

As I sort through the many piles of neglected things from the winter months, I am simultaneously doing this with my thoughts. I have been asking myself some hard questions lately and am doing my best to be brutally honest when contemplating the answers. I am working to gain clarity as I allocate time to think and write about the questions currently on my mind. Some of them are:

• Do I make choices that are in my best interest?

• Am I being a responsible individual, parent, spouse, daughter, sister, friend and professional?

• Am I caring for my health as best as I can?

• Are my actions based on my own thinking or what I believe other people think I should be doing?

• What activities do I find enjoyable and rewarding?

• Do I make mature decisions?

• What would I like to change in my life?

These questions will undoubtedly not all be answered and addressed before the end of this spring or even next spring but the process has happily begun. 

Happy Spring!  Happy Spring Cleaning!  Happy thinking!