Spring Cleaning

Leta awoke early—it was still dark—but she was ready to start. As he lay beside her, Albert’s breath lightly massaging her neck, his body close enough that even without actually touching, she could feel him. On any other morning, she would smile to herself and relax back into slumber.

But today was different. Her plans beckoned her. She gently slid out of the bed so as to not disturb her husband, at least not for a little while, and dressed quietly. She had laid out her clothes before retiring, as she usually did, but today was different. Instead of her usual housedress, she donned a worn and stained cotton dress she kept in the back of her closet, an apron that had seen better days and swept her hair into a headscarf.

Then she smiled.

She left her own bedroom with the door open, stepped down the hall and rapped on her daughter Vivian’s door.

“Vivian,” she called sweetly, “time to get up.”

She heard the slight stirring and then asked, “Are you awake?”

Leta was rewarded with the rich morning voice of her ten-year-old daughter, “Yes, Ma, I’m up.”

Ten minutes later, mother and daughter were sipping coffee and eating toast at the kitchen table. The sun was rising, and the birds began to serenade them.

“It’s a perfect day,” Leta said with a big smile. “Did you strip your bed?”

“Yes, Ma,” Vivian answered.

“Excellent. We’ll start there.”

Leta absolutely loved spring cleaning, chasing away the darkness of winter and refreshing the house to greet longer, brighter days. After they finished their breakfast, Leta opened every window. The cool morning air and brightening day filled her with energy. She started in the kitchen, moved through the dining and living rooms and then to the bedrooms – first her own, where her husband Albert was rousing from the noise, then Vivian’s and finally her son Dale’s. The seven-year-old resisted a little, but mother’s cheer and humming, the open windows with sunlight streaming in and her aggressive removal of pillows and sheets forced the boy to wake.

All four of the members of the Mohr-Chetister family were soon all engaged in various tasks. While Vivian washed all the bedding, including the pillows, and hung each piece on the clothesline, Dale assisted his stepfather in beating rugs and washing all of the screens for the windows. Meanwhile, Leta was scrubbing bedroom floors and washing walls. Following the bedding, Vivian washed draperies, as Leta moved room-by-room.

When Lunchtime came, Leta removed a plate of leftover turkey she had stored in in the icebox and made sandwiches, which the hungry family devoured. Then they all went right back to work. Again and again, Leta emptied and refilled her bucket with sudsy water, humming and singing along, checking on each family member’s task. Late in the afternoon, they converged in the kitchen, where they emptied the cupboards of their contents and washed every shelf while Albert cleaned the stove.

For their late supper, Leta had previously prepared fried chicken, potato salad and lemonade. The famished family devoured it, and once they finished returning their respective bedrooms to order, they again converged for fresh pie and ice cream.

As the sun descended and the air grew chilly, Leta finished hanging the drapes and closed the windows. The setting sun peered through the front window and cast a shimmer on the walls and furniture. Leta looked through the house and smiled contentedly. While there were a few odds and ends to tackle on the following afternoon, such as washing all the glass pieces she liked to keep on windowsills and the shelves in the dining room, the house seemed new and fresh. Her beloved family was in the kitchen where Vivian was cutting pieces of strawberry-rhubarb pie. A quick laugh erupted, and Leta sighed happily.

“Spring is here,” she said.