Spring cleaning is coming up! I’ve found a method that could help you actually enjoy it!
How many of you enjoy cleaning? Raise your hands! Whoops!… I don't see so many hands here. Well, I must confess that I don't like it either, and I make a cleaning product!
But I like my cleaning product Ecoclean because it is material, skin, and environmentally friendly. And VEGAN. It is also a multipurpose cleaner that can be used almost everywhere. Ecoclean makes cleaning easier and faster. And it doesn't destroy your furniture or burn your hands.
Ok, but even when you’re using a cleaning product that you love, why is cleaning still such a drag for most of us?
It's this tedious, thankless, repetitive task that we force ourselves to do.
But, since cleaning is such a big part of our lives, whether we do it ourselves or someone is doing it for us, maybe it is possible to think about it differently?
Cleaning & Caring
At the moment, I am reading an excellent book – Why Cleaning has Meaning - written by Linda Thomas, a professional cleaner who ran her own ecological cleaning company for over twenty years. She explains that cleaning can have a profound effect not just on the spaces we care for, but on our own well-being and personal development. She says that if we raise our understanding of cleaning, we might even begin to enjoy it!
Thomas suggests that you ask yourself these questions before you start cleaning:
Thomas says that our attitude regarding the work we do is of the utmost importance.
She continues with this thought: If you cannot do what you love, you should try to love what you do.
She says that things that repeat themselves constantly can either turn into a dull routine or an opportunity for an awareness exercise. It turns out that you can practice awareness even with the most menial of tasks.
If we clean with total awareness and loving devotion, cleaning takes on a nurturing aspect and becomes caring. The whole atmosphere changes, and it is as if the room is filled with light.
I love this!
Spiritual beings – elements – energy
Thomas explains spiritual beings and different elements in her book in such an interesting way.
Someone else might call what she is talking about "energy", like the positive or negative energy you feel in a space. I am sure you have experienced it yourself. In some places, as soon as you put your foot inside, you feel great, but you can't explain why. Or also the other way around, sometimes a place feels off or you feel an inexplicable negative vibe.
Thomas refers to that energy as “spiritual beings” or “elements”. She says that when she is cleaning, she doesn't simply remove dirt; she consciously tries to create space for something new. Removing dust and dirt results in a void, which she intentionally places at the disposal of helping spiritual beings linked to the area in which she is cleaning, so that something new and positive may come about.
What you can integrate to your cleaning
Change your attitude towards what you do. Embrace the stance of loving devotion.
Clean with your full awareness and be attentive to everything you do.
How do you hold the sponge or the brush?
How do you move each item: the furniture, the curtains and so on.
Be aware of your movements; are they flowing or aggressive?
Clean every corner, be thorough.
You can even talk to your surroundings. If that feels awkward, send positive thoughts to each item as you go.
Like Thomas says, every living organism thrives when cared for, be it a human, an animal, a plant, a building, a community or a home.
I have appreciated that her advice is simultaneously practical and spiritual, and following her methods doesn't take any more of your time.
You just integrate this mentality while doing the cleaning that you would do anyway.
I will certainly try to do this myself.
I also think it is very unfair that such an important profession is ignored and often looked down upon. Most of us first miss cleaning when it is not there anymore. I have written another blog post about that: Ihr wollt es sauber?
For the upcoming spring clean
For your upcoming spring cleaning weekend, I recommend our great all-rounder Ecoclean. When you are cleaning with awareness and devotion, it helps to have the right tools.
Many people say that the beautiful thing about caring for a space is that the result of caring lasts considerably longer than "just" removing dirt.
Why don't you give it a try and check out how long it takes for the dust to come back after cleaning with caring in comparison to just cleaning.
Yay! Happy Spring Cleaning!
