A Spring Cleaning Lament

Posted on March 18, 2026 by Lynn

It’s that time again. The chore that for years has filled me with dread and exultation at the same time…Spring Cleaning. I dread doing it because the older I get the longer it takes me, and it just seems to be more and more difficult each year. It’s not the size of the task that’s more daunting, it’s just that I am more prone to procrastination now, and then I feel overwhelmed especially when I seem to be the only contributor to the cause. My sweet husband offers to help, but I’m more fastidious in this season of life. I like to have things done “just so”. So he retreats safely to his shop, his domain, while I putter inside, quietly lamenting my plight, but somehow happier cleaning on my own. My kids and perhaps my grandbabies may call me “fussy”, but honestly I can live with that title.

I suppose I’m not nearly as motivated as I once was when I was a young Mom and I felt it was a duty done for my family’s good more than mine. I mean, for health reasons it’s probably a necessary thing to thoroughly clean the house and once it’s over and done with I am very satisfied with the results. However, the satisfaction is always short-lived. Living in dusty, windy Alberta, house cleaning is a never ending exercise in futility. Truly someone needs to invent a once and done gadget that will rid my house of these pesky dust bunnies that have become Easter décor in my home this year.

I don’t mean to be a complainer, I know the Scriptures say to be “joyful in all things”, but I never thought that when I said, “I do” forty-seven years ago, that I’d be doing some of the things I’m doing now in perpetuity. I’m a relatively intelligent woman, or so that Masters Degree on the wall indicates, but I have a hard time finding much mental stimulation scrubbing toilet bowls and shooing dust bunnies from under the bed.

I remember lamenting about Spring Cleaning when I was a young Mom. I was blessed with three very creative children and during their preschool years I was a stay-at-home Mom. I loved it. I loved interacting with them all day long, but it was the cleaning up after them that was challenging. I would just start the tidying on one side of the house only to discover they’d dismantled my efforts on the other side. I’ve learned now when the Grands come to visit to confine them better in a designated play area. That way the creative mess stays more or less in one general area, and my adult children have taught their children to clean up after themselves before they go home to make it easier on Grandma. It befuddles me how they are so considerate of me now than when they were children. I guess age matters.

Then there is the man I married. Bless him. He’s had a system for sorting his socks since we were newlyweds. He’s got one pair of socks that he wears to church/work, one pair he wears to the gym, and one pair he wears in the yard or shop. For years they were sorted beside the bed on the floor. I couldn’t move them or else his whole system would have become sock chaos and I would be left with this disgruntled sockless man who would accuse me of sock sabotage! In our empty nesting years, we have compromised. Now the socks are draped over a chair along with the three outfits he rotates through during the week. At the end of the week, I throw the whole lot into the laundry and the cycle begins again. At least they’re not on the floor!

I had to laugh when the Christmas wish lists were posted for all my family members and my daughters and daughter-in-love, declared that the kids did not need more toys, they needed socks! As my son said, his boys wear the same pair of socks until they literally fall off their feet in disgust. I did notice the other day that all four of the boys had mismatched socks. Rather than be concerned, it has become a fashion statement.

But I digress…

I see the annual Spring Cleaning ritual as just an extension of normal, every day housecleaning but with more frenzy. The name kind of makes me think that just because it has such a bright and cheery name, I will take to it more agreeably. It’s like the old adage, ‘a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down’. It’s still medicine, it still tastes bad. Spring Cleaning is just cleaning, plain and simple, only more of it, to be done in less time, and with a lot less help.

I don’t know what it is, but just thinking about Spring Cleaning, has elicited an inordinate amount of random videos to pop up on my iPhone of people cleaning their homes. I don’t know what’s worse, the fact my phone reads my thoughts, or the fact these people really seem to enjoy cleaning their homes! I like the result, not the process. So, I decided this year to get a jump-start on my Spring Cleaning, doing one task at a time,… rest, recover, and then repeat over several weeks. I tackled my refrigerator a few weeks ago. Let’s just say it was a long, arduous undertaking, with lots of unlabeled Tupperware, wilted produce, and several overdue expiry dates. I can only liken the task to an archeological dig in there. It wasn’t pleasant.

Still, I try to accomplish something each day. I’ve washed windows, gotten most of the grandbaby handprints off of walls and mirrors. I have organized my kitchen, my storage room, cleaned, sorted, dusted, vacuumed and mopped. I decided to clean out all our closets, and cupboards. I was thorough and brutal with purging things that no longer brought me “joy”. Taking a car load of stuff to donate to charity brought me great joy!

Of course now I can’t find anything. *sigh*

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Walking a Thin Line

Posted on March 3, 2026 by Lynn

It’s almost impossible lately to stay “neutral” about anything. I am oftentimes caught between saying something that I know will offend, to not saying anything and still offending someone by my silence. I am walking a thin, tight rope that precariously wobbles me over a precipice. My balance is shaky at best, but in this climate of political and world upheaval, I hardly know what to say, do, or pray anymore.

I am Canadian. I am Albertan. Those two statements should not cause division but they do. I am nervous flying my Canadian flag in a province now that wants to secede from confederation. I understand the anger, the disappointment many of my neighbours and even members of my church family have towards a federal government that has for years seemed to ignore the needs and wishes of Albertans. For example: former Prime Minister Trudeau named all the provinces of Canada in his speech on Canada’s 150th Birthday celebrations, but forgot to name Alberta. It’s a slight, however minor, but it’s something that proud Albertans don’t forget. I didn’t.

I don’t want to go into all the ways that Albertans are holding serious grievances against the federal government in Ottawa. Let’s just say, they are justified. However, I find myself also staunchly defending working within a sovereign Canada. I’m a “why can’t we all just get along?” type gal. So, I’m hugging the line, and praying fervently for my province and my nation. I want to remain neutral. I won’t sign any petition to stay or to go. I want to fly both flags and not have to choose between the two.

This past month I so enjoyed watching the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics. In a world filled with turmoil, the Olympics focus on human athleticism, where nations come together in peaceful competition. Certainly there are rivalries amongst the nations, but in the spirit of cooperation, we applaud every athlete whether they stand on the podium or not. I am looking forward to the Paralympics that applauds efforts by athletes who have faced daunting physical challenges to compete on a national stage. I love their stories, and admire their skills! I pray for all the athletes.

How I wish the Olympics were not politicized. Leading up to these events, there is already controversy. The nations at war demonstrating against the injustices on both sides. Here I am again on that thin line! When will the turmoil end? I hardly know what to think, let alone, to pray.

This past week, I have been swaying back and forth like a willow tree. Trying to stay rooted to one spot, but constantly bending and trying to stay neutral about a variety of issues, hearing both sides, but still wanting to remain objective. I’ve prayed for wisdom, I’ve prayed for discernment, I’ve prayed for words of comfort, compassion, and understanding to those who seem caught up in the daily events that seem so out of control. Prayer seems to be the only tangible response to a world gone mad.

A seemingly innocuous argument has surfaced as of yesterday when British Columbia announced they will remain on daylight savings time permanently. Alberta is considering the same thing. If you read the social media commentary today and the firestorm this has caused in B.C., one wonders about priorities people have. The U.S. and Israel are bombing Iran in an unprecedented onslaught, yet people here are upset we have to set our clocks back or ahead an hour.

March has already come in like a Lion. We usually use that phrase when we speak about the weather. If the weather is wintry, cold, and blustery on March 1st, the month is roaring it’s wrath like a lion, and the expectation is that the end of the month will end in calmer, balmy weather – going out like a lamb. This year, March is starting with unrest and division. Is it any wonder I want to put a spin on that proverb?

Using the Lion and Lamb analogy we come across the majestic figure of the Lion of Judah, representing Christ’s powerful nature. The lion signifies His strength and authority. When we think of the Lion of Judah, we are reminded that we serve a God who is not only gentle and compassionate, like a lamb, but also fierce and mighty. This duality provides us with sacred assurance. We can approach God with trust and reverence, knowing He is both our protector and our guide. The symbolism invites us to lean on Him during times of turmoil, letting His power comfort us while we seek His peace. This is hugging a secure line of knowing God is in perfect control in all circumstances and I can rest in perfect peace that He is both the Lion and the Lamb.

I find the balance I need rooted in the Word to navigate these worrisome, troubled times. My prayer life reflects that. I recently came across a wonderful model of prayer, posted by Amanda Hayhurst on Facebook:

@amandahayhurstwrites

I have been using this particular model when praying for family, friends, neighbours, church family, political leaders etc.

March may have come in like a Lion this month, but I am praying boldly according to His Will, and I do feel a peace that surpasses understanding as the Lamb of God leads me in all His Ways.

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Storing Up Treasures

Posted on January 30, 2026 by Lynn

Loyal blog readers, forgive my long absence from writing. I have been writing, just not on my Journey Thoughts blog. I have been journaling, writing short articles, and I’m getting ready to submit a few more stories to some anthologies in hopes to be published again in one (or more) of them.

As you know, we had my youngest daughter and family living with us since March of 2025. Having two toddlers in the house did not lend itself well to uninterrupted writing! I cherished each day with my grandbabies, and though life was hectic and noisy, at times chaotic, I still felt a sense of peace and purpose in each day. I miss them.

They moved out and into their new home the middle of January. Unfortunately, they moved out while I was battling a bout of shingles, so I couldn’t help with their move. It was an abrupt departure, since my having shingles also put the little ones at risk for chickenpox so there were no hugs “good-bye”. I came home from the hospital to an empty, quiet house which in some ways was harder to cope with than shingles. Thankfully, I am recovered, and I am now able to visit all my grands without fear of being contagious.

The last couple of weeks I have been “reclaiming” my house, so to speak. I do this every year in January after Christmas, but having another family under our roof for the last ten months, it’s readjusting to a new normal. I methodically go from room to room and sort, clean, organize, and purge. It is easier and easier each year to let go of those things I have held on to that have become mostly dust collectors. I am definitely not a minimalist, I’m way too sentimental to give up some of my collections, however, as I age I value time much more than stuff!

After my husband’s father passed away in 2012, and we packed up his home, I brought home chinaware, glassware and some nik naks that I just couldn’t bear having auctioned off in the estate sale. I did the same thing when my parents passed years before. Needless to say, it only added to my clutter at home. I never used the pieces and my dust collection was accumulating. I was so thankful when my son-in-law took a liking to the chinaware and started using it when they prepared meals here. I asked if they would like to have it in their new home and they were delighted to take it. That freed up cupboard space for me and thus began the great purge of 2026, divesting myself of even more stuff.

My kids always know when I get into this cleaning mode, I try to unload some of the “stuff” on them. My son refused to claim a box I had designated his. “Mom! I have four boys! What should I do with Grandma’s tea set?!”

He’s got a point.

I recently came across some humorous videos of adult children making fun of some of their parent’s collections. One in particular hit close to home when the adult child lamented her inheritance of a glass cabinet filled with Precious Moments figurines. The dozens of comments followed with people wondering what to do with collector dolls, Snow Baby figurines, and spoon collections.

I am guilty of collecting all of the above!

The best idea came from a woman whose grandmother had recently passed. At her memorial service, the family had her precious collections on tables, and after the service all attendee’s were encouraged to take a keepsake to remember her grandmother. Everyone left with a memento!

I love that idea!

After all, the earthly treasures I’ve accumulated over these many years will have no real importance or value in the great scheme of things. What will be valued is time well spent with family and friends. Endearing conversations and memory-making that flow out from a blessed life grounded in Christ.

I pray for nuggets of Godly wisdom I can pass on that will be remembered and cherished much more than any of my dust-collecting nik nacs.

Amen? Amen.

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