This morning, I am adapting and reposting a blog that I wrote a year ago, because the message just feels right for today and I feel, bears repeating. I hope you agree!
I am writing this on an early Spring morning…gray and chilly still, but with the scent of new life in the air. I
throw open the window and listen to the birds at my feeder, excitedly
announcing this time of rebirth. My thoughts turn towards spring cleaning, rebirth and renewal and how
these can serve as metaphors for our own spiritual growth.
I really don't enjoy cleaning at all, but my mother-n-law, Joan, who passed on several years ago, left behind a legacy of ritualistic spring cleaning. Every March. Joan would empty and wash every cupboard and closet, scrub every wall and window and launder every curtain and rug. Top to bottom, everything received a thorough airing, cleaning and reorganizing. No matter how chilly it was, she would throw open the windows, disinfecting with sunlight and fresh air every nook and cranny of her beautiful home.
When she reached the age of eighty,
still in her own home, still doing her spring cleaning, she said to me
"You know, Patti, I just don't enjoy it like I used to", which of
course made me chuckle. Although I couldn't relate to ever enjoying cleaning, I
did admire her spunk and energy.
So, as we enter into this season of Spring, I think of Joan with love and admiration and try to apply her spring
cleaning lessons to spirituality, which resonates a bit more with me than
actual physical cleaning (which I really should do as well)!
- Emptying: Releasing old hurts, resentments, anger, sadness, anxiety, fear of the future, regrets of the past. I go outside, face the sun, breathe deeply and let it all go.
- Washing: On
my in-breath, I visualize the pure white light of the Spirit coursing
through my body from the top of my head, out through my feet, clearing any
debris, washing me clean.
- Scrubbing: Washing
alone can't always do the job. There are always stubborn stains,
crevices, hidden grime, etc. that need a little scrubbing with a stiff
brush. What old habits and patterns are hard to break, but no longer serve
me? What accumulated junk in my home or heart needs to be thrown out
and replaced with new, fresh, beautiful things?
- Laundering: Water is a metaphor for the Spirit. Ask for help
and be given the cleansing, renewing refreshment of the Spirit. This
water is restorative; showered freely on all who ask.
- Airing:
Breath is another metaphor for Spirit. As I breathe in, I feel the gentle
wind and Light of Spirit, disinfecting any areas in need of inner healing, airing out anything that has previously been hidden and
needs to come out into the open. Like wounds that need sunlight and
fresh air, my inner emotional wounds can be healed as well.
- Reorganizing: After
cleansing, I need to replace old energy with new; negative thought
patterns with positive, inspirational messages. Whatever speaks to my
heart, whether it's scripture, quotes from inspiring leaders, poetry or
song. Embrace the new, let go of the old. Be encouraged and
strong, create new habits, create positive change in my home, my heart and
the world.
This is a process, I know, that is not easy. I cling to old
ways of thinking and doing things, as most of us do. But I can start with
today, letting go of something old, breathing in the cleansing refreshment of
God's Spirit, claiming the Light of renewal and taking one small baby
step toward something fresh and new!
“Create in me a clean heart and
renew a steadfast spirit within me” Psalm 51:10
Patti Curtin
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