An Emotional Spring Cleaning For The Next Season Of Your Life

It’s an annual ritual. As the seasons change and with warmer weather on the way, the content of my closets will also change. Down from the attic come the bins of the lighter clothing. Heading back into the attic are the heavier clothes needed to get through those colder months.

Swapping out the seasonal clothing allows me the chance to look at each item being unpacked. Does the item still fit? Is it something I actually want to wear again? Is it still in good condition? The items I am going to be putting away for the season undergo the same sort of evaluation.

Spring is a great time to reset and re-evaluate.

Not just when it comes to clothing.

It’s also a great time to look deeper into the emotional things we carry with us which we may have outgrown.

No matter the season, we carry our emotions with us year round. Emotions are important barometers which reflect our inner world. I’ve come to appreciate the ability to notice my emotions. To simply step back and observe exactly how I am feeling in any moment without judging myself for having the emotions that I feel.

I discovered that I, like every human, experience a wide range of emotions. Happy, sad, angry, disappointed, bitter, frustrated. Thoughts of doubt, fear, and unworthiness can often arise as well.

Like my process of evaluating my clothing at the end of each season, I also conduct a similar process with my emotions. A sort of an emotional spring cleaning. Through this filtering out process, I will look deeper into my emotions and see if any of them no longer fit me. If they no longer fit me, why would I want to carry them forward?

Regret has been an emotion I’ve carried with me for many years. There were several significant opportunities presented to me which I never took full advantage of. I can’t count the number of times I’ve chastised myself for not making the most of them. Even though I felt justified to feel the way I did, I also realized that the weight of carrying regret was not serving me. The negativity of reliving the past had actually been impacting the quality of my present moments. Regret simply no longer fit me, and it was time to let it go. I was no longer going to let the inactions of the younger version of me take away the from the joy and peace of the current me.

Perhaps there are some emotional items in your life which you’ve been carrying through your life which no longer serve you as well? Things which weigh you down and take away from the joy and peace you so deserve to experience?

Maybe an emotional spring cleaning will get you ready for the next season of your life?