It's one of my favorite times of the year.  I have several other favorites, but this ranks way up there on my list.  It began yesterday and will continue for an undetermined length of time. Weeks, possibly a month or longer.  We work as hard, if not harder, than we do at any other time of the year.  And yet I love it.  There's such a good feeling at the end of every day as I drag my exhausted body upstairs to bed.  And each day's efforts bring us that much closer to our goal.

We always start in the living room (or parlor, to use correct Cameroonian English...remnants of the British Colonial Era.). The night before I spend time alone in the parlor, take a mental inventory of all there is to do tomorrow, and promise myself that we can easily finish this room in a day.  Silly me.  I never learn.  It will take at least a day and a half to do all there is to do in this one room.  Our team is prepped. They know what's coming.  

Day One of our annual Spring Housecleaning Event.  We gather in the parlor and I, the Shiloh drill Sargent,  pass out jobs.  Curtains are removed and taken out back to be hand washed.  We attack cobwebs and mud dabber wasp nests that have been started and abandoned.  Harmattan dirt is removed from ceilings, walls, baseboards, and every other surface. Furniture is vacuumed. All wood carvings are oiled and brought back to shiny newness. Absolutely everything is cleaned, scrubbed, polished, and put back into service.  In addition to parceling out jobs and supervising everyone, my job is to sort through all cupboards, closets, drawers and shelves, making each item justify its existence.    As I ferret out unnecessary goodies, they make their way to the giveaway pile.  People all around us can make good use of our unwanted treasures.  

Day Two one person was sent to finish cleaning the parlor, while the rest of us advanced to the dining room to begin tearing it apart.  In spite of our best efforts, we were less than half done by days end.  It's a big room.  We feed 30 people for sit down meals and over 100 for buffets.  We do this many times during the year.  Two large hutches are filled with dishes, silverware, serving bowls and platters.  Everything, absolutely everything, must be cleaned inside and out.   

Tomorrow is a day off.  Well not really "off", but just moving to other types of work.  A group of 20 Cameroonian pastors wives are coming for a three day retreat. 

The Spring Housecleaning Event will recommence next week.  And that explains why this event will continue for an undetermined length of time.  We tuck it in and around the edges of all our normal activity.  And when the inside is sparkling clean from top to bottom, we will move outside.  Porches and balconies are everywhere. An outside storage room and the carport are begging for our attention. 

Progress updates will be available as often as both electricity and the internet cooperate. We still live on the Dark Side of the Moon.

 

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