There’s something about the changing seasons that gets me thinking about deep cleaning the house. In the winter, we accumulate so many dust bunnies and fur balls, the thought of getting rid of that excess usually arrives when the birds start to sing again and new life rises up around us. This past spring left me totally devoid of the desire to clean. We were in lockdown and my inner sanctuary belonged to my husband and me alone. I didn’t have to impress anyone. I could let things slide and no one would know the difference.

When summer arrived, I should’ve been cleaning up the winter remnants and getting ready for the new season by planting things and adding a new perennial or two. My allergies exploded and the thought of being a victim of the deadly virus kept me glued to the inside rather than out. Soon I became captive to my TV and old movies and series became the soup du jour. This menu and a lack of physical activity added to my girth and made it even more difficult to get my butt in gear. Remember, I was glued to the flat screen.

The windows were coated with dirt from the construction of a new park in our neighborhood. Raindrops spattered and mixed together with the dirt and made my view almost invisible. Closets were ready to be changed back to winter clothes, but I didn’t have the motivation to rearrange anything.

Last week I enjoyed a wonderful span of three days away from the maddening crowd. There was a television, but I didn’t watch it. Instead I played cards, watched the sun rise and set over the lake, ate amazing food, played with the grand dogs, enjoyed the company of my husband, my son, my future daughter-in-law and her parents. It was just what the doctor ordered. Getting away from the news, the politics, protests and riots, man’s inhumanity against his fellow man and all the ugliness going on right now was a welcome relief.

It gave me a new outlook. Monday, I cleaned the closet that was overflowing with summer stuff and brought out the flannel. The windows were washed and for the time being are clean. This spurt of energy lasted for a day. I wonder if I should follow Maxine’s advice and just delete house cleaning from my daily planner.