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Hurry up…It’s time!

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It’s that time of year.  Spring cleaning.  Many of you may not know how old this tradition really is.   It started out some 3000 years ago- when it was a commandment to remove all the chametz from one’s life.  Now, chametz literally means “leavened items”.   Because the holiday of Pesach (Passover), which celebrates the liberation of the Jews, also involved a commandment to destroy all the chametz in one’s possession.  One is not permitted to see any chametz in one’s domain for the entire holiday.

Rid yourself of chametz

The early Christians (who were, by and large, converts from Judaism) did not give up their traditions.  Most of them probably have considered themselves akin to “Reform Judaism”, had such a moniker had existed then.   It was Saul- who renamed himself Paul- who went out to convert non-Jews, which widened the base, as he migrated to Syria, beginning the foundations of the separate religion.   But, that is not the subject of this blog.

The requirement to rid oneself of chametz is among the most stringent of commandments.  None.  Zero!  Pretty absolute.  Consider the fact that Jews don’t have a zero requirement for the everyday rules of food.  As a matter of fact, if one were unlucky enough to have some milk fall into a vat of beef stew- and the volume of the stew was 3 liters (almost a gallon), as long as the spill was less than 50 ml (1/60 of the volume), the stew would be permitted for eating.  51 ml- nope, that’s too much.   But, for Pesach (Passover), if there were a drop of leavening- the whole thing must be destroyed.  No, not thrown out.  Destroyed.

But, it’s not just food that we are talking about.  It’s normal this time of year to consider everything about our lives.  To remove all those things that have stuck around too long.  That includes things like leavening of self-importance, materialistic desires and possessions, as well as those things that slow us down, making it difficult to achieve our goals.

It’s those pens, papers, reports, magazines that we have accumulated and saved.  You know, the ones we might “need” some day soon.  Well, if they’ve been around for six months or even a year and not been touched, when do you think that day will come?

Which is exactly what I am doing this week.  Starting on the floor not used often, getting rid of all those things that have not been touched since forever.  Donating those looseleaf binders I’ve been squirreling away.  The 200 ballpoints that I never use.  (I’m a fountain pen guy, remember?)   Those computer programs (almost 1400 of them, by the way), with instructions, that probably don’t work on Windows 7 or 8…

But, you can’t have bread during Pesach!

I’m cleaning out my chametz.  From the 6th floor down to the 1st.  You should consider cleaning out your chametz, too.  (You know, like Levy’s Rye Bread- you don’t have to be Jewish!)  Streamline your life so you can enjoy your time and achieve your goals.  Then, we all can truly celebrate the fact that we are free.

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20 thoughts on “Hurry up…It’s time!”

  1. You know Roy, I have tried to do this Spring and fall every year since I can remember. When we moved my husband to town I found unopened junk mail from 1965…oy…I try to keep only what I really use and really enjoy around. In fact, my mother bless her…made me laugh the other day. I was looking at a pile of stuff we had brought over from her house. I said something about how I’d tried to simplify and she said, “Yes, and I came in and clowned everything up.” Just how she said it set me into a fit of giggles. Mom and I are both streamlining this year both in “stuff” and in life. I told her, and she agrees, life is too precious to have it “clowned up” by things that don’t serve a real purpose. Great post! <3
    Lisa recently posted..Thermal Cracked Glass Cross Light 2 Dark by Lisa Brandel

    1. Glad you enjoyed it, Lisa.
      I recall my dad’s storage pile of newspapers. Including the mint plate block of stamps I found among them from 13 years before…

      May you clean house greet you well next Monday night as you celebrate!

  2. True… most of us have things we can get rid of for the purpose of organizing things and living better! Thanks for sharing.

  3. I’m a Pen guy also, even have a few here and there in the house that are so old the ink has dried. Now I did not know this was a commandment. I could be in deep trouble because I can’t get all that done in one week. I keep telling myself (as I add stuff) that I will have a garage sale in the spring, but it looks more and more like it will be an estate sale. I could spend a day or two just using the paper shredder.
    I needed this. Thanks Roy.
    Chef William recently posted..Candied Ginger

  7. i need to spring clean so badly. My clutter weighs me down. I need to spring clean my mind, too. Great post; I had no idea of the origins of spring cleaning.

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