Declutter

A popular theme for blogs, books, essays, even newspaper articles is about simplifying our lives.  After years of singing "Material Girl" with Madonna at the top of our lungs we now find the average American deep in debt with lots of "stuff" they don't need now and probably never needed.  We just had to keep up with the Jones.  I've never made enough money to keep up with the Jones but I am a collector.  I collect tea cups, tea pots, vintage hats, baskets, books and family mementos.  I wouldn't say I hoard but I find it difficult to throw out old magazines, pieces of lace, craft items, sewing materials, comfortable old clothes and shoes and just about anything that I might find a use for one of these days.

The time has come for change.  Not big change because I find an immense joy in some of my "stuff" but my house is small so I need to declutter if for no other reason than to find storage space for new "stuff".  I started my declutter and simplifying process in my living room.  It is not going as well as planned.  My living room looks worse than when I started and I have only found two tea cups and one tea pot that I am willing to put in my daughter-in-law's yard sale.  Perhaps if I start washing and dusting all those tea cups, tea pots, nick knacks, pictures, books and hats adorning every nook and cranny of my living room I will have a change of heart.

Probably my biggest obstacle of decluttering my home is the fear of regret.  I have so much junk that I'm afraid to get rid of because I think it will be useful or valuable someday.  Many of the items I should get rid of were things given to me by Les.  Quite a few of these items I never liked.  I have kept them because they were gifts from him.  I fear I will regret not having these items down the road.  Since he is dead, there is no way he can ever give me some silly little thing to replace that which I gave away.  Silly, I know.  I have my memories and I don't need clutter to remember the gifts he gave me.  He gave them to me, not because of their value but to let me know I was on his mind while we were apart.

So this is the plan: keep the items that matter to me (possessions that I use and/or that I treasure and get rid of the things that don't matter.  Owning things require space for storage, as well as money and time to maintain and manage those items. The fewer things that I own, the fewer things I have to clean (and all my friends and family know I hate cleaning) and store and keep track of and worry about protecting.  That doesn't mean I will depersonalize my home.  I love displaying pretty things around my home.  I just will not have as many.

That is the plan.  Now let's see if I can carry out the plan!