Lately, my version of spring cleaning hasn’t looked like bins or closets or color-coded anything.
It looks like lacing up my running shoes.
It looks like picking up weights.
It looks like carving out just enough space in my schedule for me.
I’ve been running again. Not fast. Not always pretty. Definitely not because I love it.
But running has become this surprising outlet where my thoughts start to untangle.
I run the streets of my neighborhood. The same streets where Risen Devices was born.
Some of my clearest ideas have shown up somewhere around mile two.
Ideas about how to grow the business, who we could partner with, what features would make caregivers’ lives easier.
Throughout the working I’ll throw a dozen half-formed thoughts into the Notes app or text them straight to my business partner. (Sorry, Dom!). It’s basically a brain dump in motion.
But it’s more than strategy.
It’s strength.
Because Bo is growing. He still needs help getting around sometimes, and I still need to be strong enough to lift him.
That’s where the gym comes in. The lifting. The core work. The staying-ready-even-when-I’m-tired kind of training.
I’m not training for a marathon or a fitness goal.
I’m training for real life.
For caregiving. For parenting. For longevity.
And here’s the tie-in no one talks about.
This is spring cleaning too.
It’s the mental reset. The physical reset.
The part where you stop letting everyone else take up 100 percent of your energy and finally claim a little bit back for yourself.
It’s where you clean out the guilt.
The pressure.
The belief that taking care of yourself is selfish.
Because it’s not.
It’s necessary.
This season, I’m not chasing perfection. I’m chasing capacity.
I want to have the capacity to care, to lift, to lead, and to show up.
And to do that, I need to make space for myself too.
So whether it’s a jog through your neighborhood, a walk around the block, a gym session, or five minutes of quiet in your car, this is your reminder.
You matter too.
Clear some space for you.
—Mallory