Spring Cleaning

In Japan, there is the tradition of deep cleaning one’s home at the end of the year. The idea is to welcome in the New Year (and the Gods) with a clean home. There is also the feeling of cleaning away your troubles or regrets from the previous year and starting the new year fresh.

In the west, there is a similar tradition of deep cleaning one’s home, but it is usually done in the spring. We call this “Spring Cleaning”. Traditionally a lot of homes in the west had fireplaces used for heating. Since the fireplace would be in constant use during the winter months, the tradition of the deep clean would happen in the spring as the weather became warmer. During spring cleaning, we may also open all the windows and doors to let the fresh, spring air run through the house. Finally, since the weather is warmer, it is a good time to check difficult to reach areas such as rooftops, guttering and basements.

During the spring holiday this year, my family and I thoroughly cleaned one room per day until our house had been completely deep cleaned. We took the opportunity to throw away a lot of clutter and to rearrange some furniture. Everyone felt very satisfied when we had finished, with one of my children remarking that she felt like we had moved to a new house!

Do you clean your house at New Year or in the spring? Or do you do both? 

春の大掃除

日本では、年の終わりに家を大掃除する伝統があります。新年（神様たち）を綺麗な家で迎えようという事です。そこには前年のトラブルや後悔を一緒に掃除して、新たな年を気持ちよくスタートしようという気持ちがあります。

西洋でも似た大掃除の文化がありますが、通常は春に行われます。それを“Spring Cleaning”と呼んでいます。伝統的に西洋の多くの家は暖炉を使っていました。

暖炉が冬の季節は常に使われていたことから、大掃除の伝統は気温が温かくなる春に行われるようになりました。春の大掃除の間、私たちはすべての窓やドアを開放し、新鮮な春の空気を部屋中に走らせます。最後に、気温が暖かいので、屋根や雨樋、地下などのチェックするのが難しい場所の確認するのにも最適です。

今年の春休みの期間中、私は家族と徹底的に一部屋ずつ家が完璧に綺麗になるまで掃除をしました。私たちはこの機会に、乱雑なものを捨て、いくつかの家具を再配置しました。

みんな終わったときにはとても満足し、子供たちの１人はまるで新しい家に引っ越したようだと言っていました。

あなたは年末か春に大掃除をしますか？それとも両方しますか？