I saved the best of my children's toys in the hope I'd one day get to share them with grandchildren. And I have. With the joy of passing them on to the next generation, I've also had the joy of remembering when my own children cherished those firetrucks and dolls and toy trains.
But lately I've been staring at the cluttered closets of my life and wondering what I can get rid of. I feel the need to pare down, to simplify, to travel lightly through the next decade.
It isn't going to be easy, not after 30 years of living in the same house.
When my mother was struggling with the decision to sell her house, her home of 60 years, my brother said something like: "Let it go. It served its purpose. Let it serve someone else's purpose now." His words freed her from whatever had been holding her back. Within a few days a "For Sale" sign appeared on her front lawn.
"Let it go. It served its purpose. Let it serve someone else's purpose now." Not a bad mantra for someone who's trying to pare down, simplify, lighten the load for the road ahead.
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I always say that my problem with getting rid of stuff is that my memory is often TOO good. I can tell you where an item came from, why it was important and why I should keep it.
ReplyDeleteOf course, when I moved house 6 months ago, that proved to be a real issue. We still have a basement full of unsorted stuff that I'm not quite sure when we'll get around to.
My grandma had similar tendencies - at her last house before moving in with my parents, she had boxes from 2 or 3 previous moves that she had never unpacked. My mom was pretty ruthless getting rid of stuff when the time came.
This has been my mantra for a while. I just cannot seem to get rid of some things but am getting better.
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