After two years of – to say the least – a unique form of isolation, many of us have found ourselves without enough time to process all of the changes we have undergone. As winter turns to spring, our old emotions resurface – ones that we might not have had time to explore in the past. There’s this general consensus that quarantine was like a chrysalis, providing us with ample time to engage in personal growth without external noise. But with all of this internal refinement, there has been no chance to examine who we’ve grown to be. 

While some like to spend their spring cleaning reorganizing their possessions and letting unneeded ones go, this season we should try and commit this process to our emotions. For better or for worse, we’ve changed. And now we finally have a chance for the maintenance work. Granted, there are pieces of ourselves that we don’t want to let go; there are parts of ourselves that we don’t even want to contemplate. All that being said, let’s give ourselves room to rest; some cobwebs are better left unswept and some skeletons better left to the dark. 

However, now can be as good a time as any to reflect on all of our relationships, including but not limited to other people, our communities, our possessions and ourselves. Spring cleaning is much like gardening: sometimes you have to prune, and sometimes you have to plant. Though, you’ll probably end up just taking care the best you can. 

With each part of ourselves we choose to release, we can open ourselves to new opportunities. Whether you choose to refill it or allow yourself the breathing room is up to you. There has been a sense of dissociation of where we’ve mentally been. Until that past is acknowledged, we will end up carrying this weight with us. We cannot expect ourselves to engage in self-acceptance if we can’t accept our past selves. 

A lot of people hold contempt for the people they’ve been. Rarely does someone look back fondly on their 13-year-old self. While we can critique ourselves for the sake of our growth, falling into a cycle of self-deprecation inhibits that self-love we all crave. The array of emotions we have experienced during this pandemic cannot be understated. It’s no surprise that we’ve been feeling emotionally fatigued as a result. 

We don’t just need rest; we deserve it. That rest is usually achieved after we cope. Some of us need a fresh start, some need stability; regardless, there has been a lot of emotional build up leading to this year’s spring cleaning.