Spring Cleaning is Positively the Best Kind of Cleaning
I am not a cleaning diva
Confession: I am not a cleaning diva. If ever you visited my home, you would see that we live here. And, mind you, we work here too. I love being efficient, and constantly cleaning does not feel efficient to me. It feels more like emptying the sea one bucket at a time.
Besides, we don’t have help in the house. That is very UNSouth African, isn’t it? We simply feel that we can spend the money elsewhere and we want to teach the children to help. So while we all are indeed constantly sweeping and packing dishes into and out of the dishwasher, our house is hardly ever squeaky clean.
I want to be efficient
That is why I think spring cleaning is absolutely the best kind of cleaning. You take one really dirty area, spend a vigorous hour doing real work, and end with a really clean area. That is so satisfying! Never mind that the cupboard will once more collect lidless yoghurt containers very soon. You know that for one day in the spring it was spotless, and that it’s turn will come again next year.
And I hoard
I also am not a natural organiser. I am a hoarder. But living with four other people in a rondawel for twelve years taught me many things.
One is to use lists to keep me on task.
The other is to sort things using three bins (or boxes, or bags, like seen above). I am almost certain you have heard of it before. Let’s say you are clearing out the tupper cabinet. Label three large bins DISCARD, KEEP and DONATE. Whatever you touch in that cupboard, gets put into one of the bins instantly. Resist the urge to argue with yourself for minutes, or to reconsider a decision. This way you get the sorting done fast and you only pack back what you really will use again.
Throw the content of DISCARD away and give the content of DONATE to the Hospice to sell. Or to any group you’d like to support. We sometimes even leave it outside… you will be amazed at how quickly ‘donations’ like that get claimed by a needy passerby.
Spring Clean with a checklist
So I have compiled a Spring Cleaner checklist that really works for me. Perhaps it might help you, too?
Inspired by the list, I tackled an area a day and was so energised by the results! I know you are crazy busy, but why not simply decide to clean the bathroom cabinet tonight? You will be so thankful in the morning.
Cheerio
