May is beautiful. It’s finally warm, trees and flowers are in bloom, children are finishing school. Life is good!

Who knew May is an organizing holiday treasure trove?! There are three special days set aside to sort, straighten, and scrub. The origins of these holidays are unknown, but it’s enough for a left-brain-dominant clutter-controller like me just to know they exist.

May 10 is National Clean Your Room Day. The day may be related to religious customs to clean before certain holidays. It could derive from the tradition of having to clean in the spring, after a winter of fireplace use left a layer of soot in a house. Whatever the source, and depending on your perspective, NCYRD either provides an excuse to give our rooms a good once-over or makes us do it one day out of the year. Children are notorious for having messy rooms, but adults sometimes have the same challenge. Observing NCYRD can give a family the opportunity to get together and make an otherwise onerous task fun. Make a game out of it – set criteria for what “clean” means, then play “Beat the Clock” and see who can get a room clean fastest. Give “prizes” to the winners. Golden Sponge Award, anyone? Grab a big bag and fill it with things you no longer need as you clean. Schedule a donations pickup for May 11. Everyone wins – the room is clean, you have fun as a family, and someone with less can benefit from your generosity.

May 17 is Pack Rat Day. A “pack rat” may appear to acquire an overabundance of things that seem to have little value. It’s important to make a distinction between someone who collects and someone who hoards. A collector is very selective about what is acquired, carefully curating the collections. S/he actively maintains a collection, bringing in new pieces as needed and passing along pieces that no longer fit. The collection brings the collector happiness. In contrast, someone who hoards may acquire for the sake of acquiring, experiences great distress at the prospect of dis-acquiring something, may or may not live in squalor, and is negatively affected by the hoard. Collecting can be considered a hobby, while Hoarding Disorder is a recognized diagnosis requiring the care of a qualified mental health professional.

May 18 is National No Dirty Dishes Day. This holiday is a small motivator that could have a much bigger impact. For people who want to declutter and/or clean, but who don’t know where to start, washing all of the dirty dishes provides an answer. It is an activity with a finite end – once all of the dishes are washed, you’re done. However, seeing the satisfying results of an empty sink and clear counters can very quickly snowball into wanting to organize the pantry, clean out the fridge, and keep going until everything is clean and neat. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! A great reward for getting the dishes done?