MountainMornings

“It’s Springtime and birds do sing,” is a line from an old Shakespearean song and boy are they singing this morning. It seems to me they are heralding in Spring Cleaning; that age old ritual we all learned and promptly forgot in the midst of all-weather fabrics. Once upon a time there were slipcovers to change, curtains and blinds to wash, rugs to be beaten or shampooed; all along with a veritable bevy of mind-numbing chores to keep us busy. Quick, to the ladders with Windex! It’s no wonder we love to watch Downton Abbey – all those hard working servants, seamlessly in the background, keeping the manse in tip top shape. But now?

Not so much. We modern day homemakers have Dyson vacuums and Jetson-like self-cleaning ovens to make our lives easier. Still there is something in the air that makes us want to shake off the Winter blues and throw open our doors to sunshine and stink bugs. Maybe not the bugs. What’s an empty nester to do? No more stinky boy gym bags to disinfect. No need to upend drawers full of sweaters and woolen socks to pack away in cedar closets. That’s it! Organize your closets!! It’s amazing how cluttered a closet can get in one little year. And if that’s too overwhelming a task, start small.

Kaizen baby! The Japanese approach of using “small steps” to attack a bigger issue was first implemented for factory workers, probably at Toyota. It roughly translates to “continuous slow improvement.” I learned about it at a Canyon Ranch lecture eons ago. Let’s say your goal is to take better care of your teeth. You don’t say to yourself, “I’m going to brush after every meal and floss every night.” You start small, maybe saying “Tonight I will floss one tooth.” Then gradually you will accomplish your mission.

So yesterday I ordered a truckload of mulch for Bob, lucky man! And then I set about cleaning and organizing the space between our 2 sinks. It had become a pile of rarely used make-up, hair rollers, discarded travel samples, and anti-aging creams and contraptions. I opened the window and lit a clean laundry scented candle. And buried beneath the clutter I found a picture of me in a bathing suit in Sea Bright, NJ at forty. And now I have my mission!