healthy bytes: spring clean your life

Having survived the winter, spring is traditionally the time to rid the house of dirt, dust and cobwebs that have crept in over the cooler months. Spring cleaning typically means vacuums, open windows and elbow grease. Now, as a resident of a shoebox apartment with no floor space and a ten-centimetre square of ventilation, I’ve come up with a more useful (and longer lasting) kind of Spring cleaning. Here’s my guide to Spring cleaning your life this spring.

Neutralise negative relationships.

That friend you fell out with back in high school. That ex from years ago, who you still hate for a reason you can no longer remember. That blocked list of people on Facebook.  That work colleague who stole your lunch one time. The people you once said you’d never ever speak to ever ever again. I’ve found that leaving relationships in this negative state makes me feel upset whenever I think about them, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Send them a text, write them a FB message, offer to meet up for coffee just to say hi – the worst thing they can do is say no, and regardless of their response you’ll feel a lot better for being open and positive.

Call your family. Ask them how they are.

I live three hours away from my family and see them at most once a month. My parents call me when they can but it’s usually to find out what I’m doing. As young people, we’re so immersed in our own lives that most of us forget that our parents are people living their own exciting lives too. So call your mum or dad. Skype’s awesome too. Ask what’s been happening lately. Ask what your brother or sister is up to. Even call your siblings for a change. (I did this to my brother recently and he spent the whole phone call interjecting, ‘Why are you calling me?’) Call your grandma and gossip about the weirdos on public transport these days. Call your cousin and tell her the Facebook photos of her baby are so damn cute. Family’s always going to be there for you. This spring show your family that, despite your busyness, you’re there for them too.

Do something for you.

Are you a workaholic? Are you in a relationship where you base your schedule around your partner’s schedule? Are you dreaming about your uni assignments? This spring’s the time to make some time for yourself. Take up a class in something wacky just for the sake of it, cook your favourite food the exact way you like it, spend a whole day watching all the movies your boyfriend/girlfriend turned their nose up at, take a bike ride to nowhere. You aren’t defined by your work or uni or by another person, so this spring do something for you.

Do you have any ‘Spring cleaning’ tips to add to the list? Post them below!

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