I sat in silence as I watched my new walker toddle across his room, back and forth, pulling every single thing out of its place and throwing them all excitedly into the middle of the floor. By now, he’d made his way to his favorite place to reorganize – his dresser (which had previously been immaculately sized and organized by yours truly). He opened and closed each drawer diligently as he pulled out his pairs of pants one at a time, inspected them, and tossed them emphatically behind his back and onto the floor. When all the pants that had to go were gone, he turned around, grabbed one pair at a time to re-inspect and then place it back into the drawer of his choosing – regardless of whether I’d previously elected to store shirts or pants or hats or socks in it – and arrange it however he wanted. Crumpled, flat, sideways or straight – he had his own little organizational system all worked out.
There still may be shirts in the pants drawer and pants in the shirts drawer, and there are definitely toys in every drawer. And all I could do was watch in amazement as I observed his little mind at work. The expression on his face as he sorted through and rearranged everything was so resolute, and the confident way he closed each drawer after he placed something in it was like he just knew he’d done a good job.
So, there I sat, thinking about the irony of this being the first week of spring and how this wasn’t exactly what I’d had in mind in terms of spring cleaning. I mean, God only knows if/when I’ll find all the things he’s thrown around! But I soon realized there was quite a significant lesson to be learned in that moment…
I’d been silently praying that God would somehow reset my mind. Mentally, I’ve been all over the place and it’s been taking its toll on my perspective and my productivity. I admitted that it felt like I knew what to do – how to get myself back on track – but somehow there was a disconnect that made it feel like, for some reason, it just wouldn’t work for me… not this time. I sat in the glider and emptied my heart before God as Jeremiah emptied out his dresser. All I knew to do was dump everything and start over, asking God to help me put back the right things, in the right places. That’s when Jeremiah’s little lesson on organization really hit home for me.
Sometimes we arrange ourselves, our lives the best way we know how. We do what makes the most sense to us – shirts in one drawer, pants in another, or whatever the case may be – and just go with it. But then we may come to a place when our system stops working for us, and it can become incredibly frustrating when we don’t understand why. If it made logical sense in the first place, why wouldn’t it keep working, right? Well, life is full of seasons, and sometimes when the season changes, our approach must change as well.
In this season of my life, I find myself unable and unwilling to juggle all the things I once would. My priorities have shifted, but my processes haven’t, so I’ve been feeling really overwhelmed lately. I realize I need to take some time to clean out my mental, physical and spiritual processes and put things back in the way that best suits this season’s priorities. And it’ll be ok if it looks nothing like last season. After all, isn’t that what growth is all about?
I’m (slowly) learning that I might not put all the same things back, and I might not put what does go back in the same places that they used to occupy. It will take time, but I think I’ll be better for it. The first thing to go in my “spring cleaning for the soul” process was social media. I started my social media fast today – that endless scrolling compulsion was a process that needed to be checked immediately! It’s been deteriorating my productivity and confidence in what I’m purposed to do; so until I can figure out how to engage constructively, it’s off the table. There’s much more spring cleaning to be done for me in many facets of life, but at least I feel good about how I’m starting today.
What does spring cleaning for the soul mean to you? What new priorities and processes will you implement in this new season of life? Leave a comment to let me know.
Much love, and happy Spring!