De-Cluttering Idea
I am a messy - in case you didn't know. I am a magnet for stuff - it sticks to me - I like stuff. I like the comfort of having it. The psychological security blanket of knowing I have everything I really don't need. And this hoarding instinct - this desire to have every gadget or item that might have a possible use has crippled me in many ways.
The junk that surrounds me sucks energy. It sucks time. It sucks the life out of a peaceful home. I want the end of clutter in our home. But much like weight-loss, careful budgeting and over-committed lives leading to time constraints in every category, this battle will have to be waged one day at a time - little by little, until it is a manageable mess, not a chaotic tornado zone.
I'll let you know if I ever get there - to that place of pleasant minimal disarray that says kids live here but we're not about to end up in the ER over someone's accident tripping over a toy. But don't hold your breath. I guess I have noble intentions - my hopes and desires are in the area of orderliness. Just how to get there seems like tackling Mount Everest when I'm not a mountain climber in the least. Simplicity of life sounds so appealing - but the road to get there seems like a marathon to one who doesn't run.
So I'm beginning with just one small step. After the fires in Colorado last month I got to thinking about the devastation of losing stuff in a fire. I know, because...well, you'll find out when I post more of my story. But I thought about - what if a fire came and burned through all my stuff - how would I feel? How would I feel about the stuff? Would it matter? So I came up with an idea. As I go about my de-cluttering I will ask myself the three R's.
If a fire were coming would I RESCUE this item? If yes, then keep it.
If a fire were coming and I had no time, would I leave it and later REPLACE it? If yes, then keep it (no point wasting money to declutter - when you find you needed that thing and have to go buy another one).
If no to these two questions then the third R comes into play: Get RID of it.
This is just the beginning of the journey... I'll let you know how it goes.
The junk that surrounds me sucks energy. It sucks time. It sucks the life out of a peaceful home. I want the end of clutter in our home. But much like weight-loss, careful budgeting and over-committed lives leading to time constraints in every category, this battle will have to be waged one day at a time - little by little, until it is a manageable mess, not a chaotic tornado zone.
I'll let you know if I ever get there - to that place of pleasant minimal disarray that says kids live here but we're not about to end up in the ER over someone's accident tripping over a toy. But don't hold your breath. I guess I have noble intentions - my hopes and desires are in the area of orderliness. Just how to get there seems like tackling Mount Everest when I'm not a mountain climber in the least. Simplicity of life sounds so appealing - but the road to get there seems like a marathon to one who doesn't run.
So I'm beginning with just one small step. After the fires in Colorado last month I got to thinking about the devastation of losing stuff in a fire. I know, because...well, you'll find out when I post more of my story. But I thought about - what if a fire came and burned through all my stuff - how would I feel? How would I feel about the stuff? Would it matter? So I came up with an idea. As I go about my de-cluttering I will ask myself the three R's.
If a fire were coming would I RESCUE this item? If yes, then keep it.
If a fire were coming and I had no time, would I leave it and later REPLACE it? If yes, then keep it (no point wasting money to declutter - when you find you needed that thing and have to go buy another one).
If no to these two questions then the third R comes into play: Get RID of it.
This is just the beginning of the journey... I'll let you know how it goes.
Comments
Post a Comment