I have been cleaning house today. I mean real cleaning. I mean the kind that will make me some major brownie points with my sweet bride. The boys joined me in this true feat of spring cleaning. We held few hostages. A lot went straight to the trash. Spring cleaning reveals far more than I care to admit about the present condition of my life. In fact, I actually formulated a pretty good little list.

• I was reminded that there are more books lying beside the couch where I read than I could possibly read in the next two years. I love to read. I enjoy a variety of genres. Two notes to self: Carve out more reading time and don’t buy any more books until I can put a dent in the present stack!

• Dust accumulates in places that the naked eye can’t possibly see during a routine cleaning. How could I possibly miss that much dust on my weekly June Cleaver days? Surely it is has nothing to do with me being male?
• I unearthed a few treasures that I have not seen in quite some time! That made our cleaning feat worthwhile! It was sort of disturbing to think that they were missing in action all of this time.

Where is the learning curve? I think there are some pretty legitimate applications to life from my little cleaning venture. I would like to think that I spend more time reading than I do on the computer. I would like to think that I am eating more broccoli than pop tarts. I would like to think that I am spending more time with my boys that I am doing selfish things for myself. The list could go on…But the stack of books calling out my name tells the true story.

Dust collects on our hearts too. And it collects in crevices of our heart that we did not know existed. We become aware of the dust when we are faced with a challenge that we struggle to handle. Those spiritual muscles have not been stretched and dust has collected. A good spring cleaning at least makes the presence of the dust known!

I know there are treasures hidden in my heart too. Memories of interactions with people that I have not brought to my conscious state for years… Those are treasures! Ideas that I have not pondered for quite some time… They too are treasures. Spring cleaning comes at unexpected moments in such cases.

I am glad I got the cleaning done today. It feels good. I still have gutters to clean out and a painting project that is calling my name. But Michelangelo is not feeling like painting the ceiling of the chapel or the ceiling of my bathroom either this week. So…it may wait until another day of inspiration strikes. And in the meantime, I know that my heart needs to be purified. It needs a good spring cleaning, where few hostages are held.