Spring Cleaning
Oh my how the time flies!
I've lost track of how many times I've planned to sit down and write a message to you, only to have something pop up needing attention. Although I've been quiet, a lot has been shapeshifting in the background. Perhaps you can relate?
Over the past 2 years, living with the symptoms of long COVID, there's been a lot of doing that went undone in my realm. I had a breakthrough late fall with a nicotine patch protocol that helped kickstart my inner engine. I'll share more in the future, but if you're also dealing with the impacts or know someone who is, please reach out and I'll be glad to email you some resources.
Springtime in the desert starts early. The past months my time has been spent weeding, clearing, and sprucing up neglected outdoor spaces. It's felt so good to feel well enough to be out in the yard for hours. It's been a gentle reminder of how connected our internal state and external spaces are, and vice versa. Even the medicine wheel pictured above called out for a new iteration—a sure sign of positive change as Lady Banks Rose bloomed with more exuberance than ever in affirmation.
This last week a theme in client sessions and conversations has been around spring cleaning. Not the typical clearing clutter and deep cleaning. Spring cleaning, patterns, habits, mindsets, and rethinking the ways we orient to everyday life.
In my own life this looks like changing up how we use the existing spaces in our home in ways that help us feel more at home. My gardening spaces have been fully revamped, creating a true oasis in the desert. A ritual of afternoon tea that carried me through the cold winter months has now move outdoors. Remembering hobbies and interests from decades ago have reignited a spark of creativity and joy.
What in your own life might benefit from a more expanded approach to spring cleaning? What is today's full moon illuminating as played out, purpose served, ready to be released or reinvented?
2024 is the year of the Wood Dragon in Chinese astrology, carrying the energy of deep transformation, renewal and healing— especially physical healing. Not only healing of the physical body, but healing the landscape of your personal world and the collective. Now is the the time to ride the dragon into a palpable experience of wellbeing, on all levels. Sounds pretty good to me!
As you dive into the alchemical power of spring cleaning, here are a few things to remember to make the most of your efforts:
1) If you smudge your spaces by burning sage or other cleansing herbs, OPEN as many doors and windows as possible. The old energies need a path of exist otherwise you're just moving them around your space.
2) If you wear stones or crystals set in jewelry, carry them around with you, or use them prominently in your spaces, remember to cleanse and energize them. Stones are refreshed using the elements. Place them out in the rain or in moving water (under the tap is fine), then let them bask in the sunlight for a few hours, full moonlight overnight, or tuck them down into the roots of a houseplant for a few days.
3) If a ritual, habit, or routine feels flat, the question is not "what am I doing wrong that it's no longer working?" The better question is "how can I change this up so it feels better than it does now?"
4) You don't need to reinvent the wheel. Explore how you can use what you've got in new and different ways so it works better for you.
5) Less is more. When you feel overwhelmed and exhausted by day-to-day life, consider what can be set aside for a time (or permanently), outsourced, or reimagined to feel more manageable.
May the emergence of new life this springtime be felt in the roots of your own life so you can flourish in all the ways 🌱
I hope you'll join me in soaking up some sunlight, breathing in the fragrance of spring blossoms, and put the scrubbing bubbles to work in whatever areas of your life need it most.
