I am making the effort to try and stay focused and more positive this month, now that my gloomy month of annual anniversaries has passed. Although today is the anniversary of my husband's funeral and the 7th was his memorial service.
1. I need to be more proactive in finding some kind of new job. I've been out there pounding the pavement but nothing has come through. I'll take a store sales job just to bring in some extra funds for the holidays right now.
2. I am still dealing or trying to deal with the aftermath of moving and all the storage shed crap. So many boxes, bags, totes and baskets of stuff to go through. Recipe for disaster - moving from large five bedroom home into small two bedroom apartment. On the bright side, I figure I am doing what would need to be done when moving into a retirement home, so I am accomplishing all of this a few years ahead of time and saving my sons the aggravation besides of having to face it!
So on that note I am trying to give/donate 10 things a day away this month. And throw away/recycle 10 things as well. And to get through 10 of my craft magazines daily since they seem to take over the bookshelves. I'd like to tear out any patterns that inspire me and file them, then pass on the other patterns to others who may use them.
10 x 3 = 30. 30 x 7 = 210. 210 x 4 -= 840. Wouldn't that be great to have reduced my "stuff" by that number by the end of the month! What a gift to start Christmas with and the new year/new life!
3. I'd like to knit/crochet some Christmas ornaments so the boys and I can decorate a small tree this year. And to keep costs down I'd like to occupy my hands by creating my own decorations. We'll see how that goes. I need to come up with some kind of theme and so far nothing is hitting me. Snowflakes with blue baubles? Birds and hearts? Felted apples? Old-fashioned toys? Whatever it ends up being it'll need to be quick and easy and I need to be able to use whatever stash yarn I have on hand. Maybe something really different like a hot pink themed tree? It would also be fun to make an ornament a day from now through the end of the month in between my searching to throw stuff away. Ha, ha!
Well, we'll see how these goals go. They are what I'm aiming for. If a day goes by where I don't reach quota I won't knock myself. Any progress in these areas is progress.
Showing posts with label de-cluttering. Show all posts
Showing posts with label de-cluttering. Show all posts
Monday, November 1, 2010
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Buried Alive
I am taking a week off to clear out and consolidate the storage sheds from two into one. I've already done a fair amount of work last week to the point where my back ached from moving boxes. I also find the job rather overwhelming and tedious. The best way I can describe it is that I feel as though I am being smothered by the past. And I have reached a point where I want the past cleared out so I can face the future with more of a clean slate.
The sheds contain a lot of stuff of my husband's (even from his first marriage) and my parent's. When I moved from my five bedroom house last fall into our two bedroom apartment, there wasn't enough time before winter hit to do a major clear-out. So this is it. Whatever doesn't fit into the one storage shed I'm going to maintain, will be donated or tossed. This is a chore and a difficult job. Especially doing it on one's own. No one tells you how much work it takes being a widow. Having to face these tasks even years later doesn't make it any easier. Although I know he isn't here anymore, I do question what my husband would want done with his possessions - the same with my dear Mom's things.
Last week I took a huge step, leap is more like it by taking five huge overflowing boxes of old National Geographic magazines to the used book store. I could barely lift the boxes. Now these were from my husband's office and classroom and they've sat in the storage shed because my youngest insisted he wanted all of them. But I drew the line that they take up too much space. As a compromise, my youngest can keep his dad's large collection of history books (his speciality was the Middle Ages) because he is leaning toward becoming a history teacher himself.
I got $5.00 for the 200 magazines - not very much. But I felt as though a weight was lifted from me. It was difficult to part with the magazines because they were a visual reminder of my husband. He always was reading one and they'd be scatterted around the house with tabs marking certain pages. But it is time to let them go. To someone who may collect them or be able to use them now rather than being shut away in a dank, dark storage shed getting mildewed.
Today, I went through some of my mom's old clothes and old clothes from the boys, sorting them to go to the resale shop as a donation. I was reminded by how nicely I dressed my boys when they were little and certain items brought back various memories. But again, I am so pleased that someone (maybe a young, struggling mom or dad) will be able to use these clothes now.
I anticiapte that it will be a rough week. The boys have committed to helping me with the undertaking. When I'm working in the shed or going through the bags of stuff I just feel so overwhelmed and closed in. It is like the past is burying me alive - all the stuff from my husband's classroom, all the old stuff from my parent's life, not to mention the old stuff from MY life. I went through a giant garbage bag of items that had been in the desk of my husband's classroom. It was a very heavy bag. What was mostly weighing it down were the files my husband had filled with his first son's art and school work. This is my sons' half-brother, age 28 who is now a teacher himself and married. The files were from pre school all through grade school. Of course I am going to pass these on to the boys' brother as soon as they get together in the future (the sooner the better). What struck me was how sweet and dear it was that my husband kept all of his first son's art and school work. He didn't need to do that for his second and third boys because I was the scrapbooker in the family.
It was a nice surprise to come across and reminded me of the good man my husband was. He used to say that he wasn't a wealthy man in terms of money but that he was a rich man because of his three sons. And he'd have tears in his eyes as he said this. I found it kind of ironic that although I am going through the sheds in an effort to clear out the past, these files were pieces of the past that should be saved and passed on.
Today, in a bunch of papers was a darling picture my youngest colored as a very little one. Four stick figures representing a family but they were just huge heads with the arms and legs coming out of each head. Absolutely adorable! It was clear that the dad and mom were my husband and I, and the children my two sons. I set the drawing aside in a safe place. I want to frame it right away and put it up - it's that cute. And I think it is significant and should be displayed. That little family my youngest depicted in his early artwork still does live on in spirit. It isn't evident in the old books and magazines that belonged to my husband. But in the love and the values that do live on within this family unit despite the absence of one.
The sheds contain a lot of stuff of my husband's (even from his first marriage) and my parent's. When I moved from my five bedroom house last fall into our two bedroom apartment, there wasn't enough time before winter hit to do a major clear-out. So this is it. Whatever doesn't fit into the one storage shed I'm going to maintain, will be donated or tossed. This is a chore and a difficult job. Especially doing it on one's own. No one tells you how much work it takes being a widow. Having to face these tasks even years later doesn't make it any easier. Although I know he isn't here anymore, I do question what my husband would want done with his possessions - the same with my dear Mom's things.
Last week I took a huge step, leap is more like it by taking five huge overflowing boxes of old National Geographic magazines to the used book store. I could barely lift the boxes. Now these were from my husband's office and classroom and they've sat in the storage shed because my youngest insisted he wanted all of them. But I drew the line that they take up too much space. As a compromise, my youngest can keep his dad's large collection of history books (his speciality was the Middle Ages) because he is leaning toward becoming a history teacher himself.
I got $5.00 for the 200 magazines - not very much. But I felt as though a weight was lifted from me. It was difficult to part with the magazines because they were a visual reminder of my husband. He always was reading one and they'd be scatterted around the house with tabs marking certain pages. But it is time to let them go. To someone who may collect them or be able to use them now rather than being shut away in a dank, dark storage shed getting mildewed.
Today, I went through some of my mom's old clothes and old clothes from the boys, sorting them to go to the resale shop as a donation. I was reminded by how nicely I dressed my boys when they were little and certain items brought back various memories. But again, I am so pleased that someone (maybe a young, struggling mom or dad) will be able to use these clothes now.
I anticiapte that it will be a rough week. The boys have committed to helping me with the undertaking. When I'm working in the shed or going through the bags of stuff I just feel so overwhelmed and closed in. It is like the past is burying me alive - all the stuff from my husband's classroom, all the old stuff from my parent's life, not to mention the old stuff from MY life. I went through a giant garbage bag of items that had been in the desk of my husband's classroom. It was a very heavy bag. What was mostly weighing it down were the files my husband had filled with his first son's art and school work. This is my sons' half-brother, age 28 who is now a teacher himself and married. The files were from pre school all through grade school. Of course I am going to pass these on to the boys' brother as soon as they get together in the future (the sooner the better). What struck me was how sweet and dear it was that my husband kept all of his first son's art and school work. He didn't need to do that for his second and third boys because I was the scrapbooker in the family.
It was a nice surprise to come across and reminded me of the good man my husband was. He used to say that he wasn't a wealthy man in terms of money but that he was a rich man because of his three sons. And he'd have tears in his eyes as he said this. I found it kind of ironic that although I am going through the sheds in an effort to clear out the past, these files were pieces of the past that should be saved and passed on.
Today, in a bunch of papers was a darling picture my youngest colored as a very little one. Four stick figures representing a family but they were just huge heads with the arms and legs coming out of each head. Absolutely adorable! It was clear that the dad and mom were my husband and I, and the children my two sons. I set the drawing aside in a safe place. I want to frame it right away and put it up - it's that cute. And I think it is significant and should be displayed. That little family my youngest depicted in his early artwork still does live on in spirit. It isn't evident in the old books and magazines that belonged to my husband. But in the love and the values that do live on within this family unit despite the absence of one.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
All By Myself
I knew this would be a tough weekend in terms of feeling alone. But I am surprised at the intensity of my loneliness. I guess I need to try and find diversions for myself to get out and about in the future because here on my own I just seem to simmer and stew. Not that I'm unproductive. I've been going through the boxes of my parent's paperwork that has been in the storage shed. Tonight one of the boxes I concentrated on was full of cassette tapes of my dad's. This is a depressing job because none of the tapes are labeled. There have to be around 100. So I am playing them on a cassette recorder before tossing in case he recorded one of our high school band or orchestra performances. I got to hear Richard Nixon's resignation speech and a couple of band concerts, although which one or year is unknown. Then the cassette player broke, probably because the tapes I am trying to play are circa 1975.
In a sense, the mere fact that I am taking the time to listen to these tapes is depressing in and of itself. But I know he taped us kids talking at the dinner table and I do not want one of those thrown out. I came across a bunch of old slides from a trip he took in the late 1950s and some taken of he and my Mom on a trip they took a few months before I was born. Then there were some wedding photos of my father's brother. So in between the junk are a few treasures.
Because the boys are out I decided to make do with what is in the pantry for my dinner and save what I was going to fix for tomorrow. That way I can stretch out the food budget. But there really isn't anything tasty except odd flavored soups such as leek and bean with bacon that I now have no idea why I ever purchased. I am going to try the leek soup but wish there was some split pea or veggie.
There are times it is good to be reflective, contemplative and by yourself. But right now with the gloom of winter upon us, I need to be surrounded by loving warmth and company. I wish I didn't have to be home alone tonight. I am down about that. And the leek soup doesn't help! It would be better if there were some carbs around to uplift my spirits a bit. I should motivate myself to bake some blueberry muffins or some oatmeal cookies but hearing the Nixon speech kind of put a damper on my enthusiasm. I'm holding out for Saturday Night Live which I hope will bring me a laugh or two. Having some popcorn and a cup of hot chocolate while watching might revive me a little.
Today I am grateful:
1. That although it is cold it is not bitterly so.
2. For the moon overhead - hauntingly beautiful tonight.
3. For the cute ovenmitt I got at the dollar store. I needed one since all my towels and such are hidden somewhere in the depths of the storage shed.
4. That my oldest had a good time on his overnight band trip.
5. For the opportunity and means to vent about my pathetic Saturday night on my own!
In a sense, the mere fact that I am taking the time to listen to these tapes is depressing in and of itself. But I know he taped us kids talking at the dinner table and I do not want one of those thrown out. I came across a bunch of old slides from a trip he took in the late 1950s and some taken of he and my Mom on a trip they took a few months before I was born. Then there were some wedding photos of my father's brother. So in between the junk are a few treasures.
Because the boys are out I decided to make do with what is in the pantry for my dinner and save what I was going to fix for tomorrow. That way I can stretch out the food budget. But there really isn't anything tasty except odd flavored soups such as leek and bean with bacon that I now have no idea why I ever purchased. I am going to try the leek soup but wish there was some split pea or veggie.
There are times it is good to be reflective, contemplative and by yourself. But right now with the gloom of winter upon us, I need to be surrounded by loving warmth and company. I wish I didn't have to be home alone tonight. I am down about that. And the leek soup doesn't help! It would be better if there were some carbs around to uplift my spirits a bit. I should motivate myself to bake some blueberry muffins or some oatmeal cookies but hearing the Nixon speech kind of put a damper on my enthusiasm. I'm holding out for Saturday Night Live which I hope will bring me a laugh or two. Having some popcorn and a cup of hot chocolate while watching might revive me a little.
Today I am grateful:
1. That although it is cold it is not bitterly so.
2. For the moon overhead - hauntingly beautiful tonight.
3. For the cute ovenmitt I got at the dollar store. I needed one since all my towels and such are hidden somewhere in the depths of the storage shed.
4. That my oldest had a good time on his overnight band trip.
5. For the opportunity and means to vent about my pathetic Saturday night on my own!
Saturday, January 23, 2010
The Time Is Now
I've been way guilty of saving a lot of objects in my life for later. Like all the creams and lotions that come with the perfume gift sets I get at the holidays or for Mother's Day. And I have tons of candles that have remained unburned. They are so pretty and smell so nice I don't know why I have never lit them. Also, various makeup items, fancy soaps, stationery, note cards, bottles of wine, clothing, bound journals - I can probably think of more things but I'll quit while I'm ahead.
Having to move from the house to the apartment resulted in me clearing out various drawers and shelves and all of this stuff became unhidden. The other day I came across a large bag of soap dishes, hand cream tubes and cute soaps in the shape of snowflakes. I had purchased them a few years back to have on hand to give as holiday and teacher gifts. It really bothered me to see them again as they were long forgotten. For one thing they are not being used and they are taking up valuable and needed space.
I knitted two adorable dish cloths in a multi-colored blue cotton yarn to add to the bath items and I gave two sets away. One to the boys' school counselor for all her help in getting the boys back on track after their move and return. The other to my Nursing Assistant instructor because I really liked her and we developed a bit of friendship between us in the five weeks I took the class. I plan on knitting up three more dish cloths. They are round and in the shape of flowers - just adorable. Each takes about two hours for me to knit but I do so during my downtime while watching t.v. - that is why it probably takes two hours because I have to keep track of rows, so I wait til the commercials. Anyway, I want to give away two bath sets to the moms of my sons' friends whom they often stay over with and as a housewarming to my girlfriend who sold her home and moved into a townhouse. I will keep and use one set for myself.
That big bag is just looking at me with an evil eye. I don't want any bags like this in my life anymore. Things need to be used and appreciated - not stored away for a rainy day in the future. I have started to use up my supply of lotions and creams and am finding that the five minutes I devote to myself in the morning to do so is a way cheap but well worth it luxury. I smell great all day and my dry winter skin is smooth. I am lighting candles during the day while I work on the computer and then again at night when the boys and I eat dinner and then they do homework. The candles glowing have taken away some of the gloom of winter.
I have also started work on cleaning and clearing out storage shed #2 of the original 3 - currently there are just 2. I am going to ruthless in what I decide to keep and discard. There are about 10 small boxes of my beloved grandmother's china that my mom gave me some years before she died. She knew I would appreciate the design because it is made up of orange flowers and orange is one of my favorite colors. I am strongly considering getting the boxes out of storage and displaying them in someway or just using them. Why not? What good are they doing sitting in storage? So what if one piece out of the eight piece set breaks? Isn't it better to use what we love and enjoy it fully?
I got this image of my boys having to clear out my clutter and knew without a doubt that all the lotions, creams and candles would wind up in a dumpster somewhere. So I am going to be non-frugal with what I already own and have. I'm going to use it up with no worries about waste or running out. I am going to appreciate the little luxuries I already have. I am experiencing an unexpected surge of pleasure whenever a candle burns down and I have to replace it and I use up a tube of the nice body lotion.
Today I am grateful:
1. For all of the excess in my life because it does represent a life of plenty even now during hard times.
2. For the spring catalogs appearing in the mail. I get inspired at looking at pretty things even not being able to afford them right now. And I get decorating and craft ideas for free too!
3. For all the free craft patterns I can access via the internet.
4. For warm, cozy and soft gloves.
5. For the scent of Johnson's Baby Lotion. I am using a cream that smells like this right now and it is very soothing.
3.
Having to move from the house to the apartment resulted in me clearing out various drawers and shelves and all of this stuff became unhidden. The other day I came across a large bag of soap dishes, hand cream tubes and cute soaps in the shape of snowflakes. I had purchased them a few years back to have on hand to give as holiday and teacher gifts. It really bothered me to see them again as they were long forgotten. For one thing they are not being used and they are taking up valuable and needed space.
I knitted two adorable dish cloths in a multi-colored blue cotton yarn to add to the bath items and I gave two sets away. One to the boys' school counselor for all her help in getting the boys back on track after their move and return. The other to my Nursing Assistant instructor because I really liked her and we developed a bit of friendship between us in the five weeks I took the class. I plan on knitting up three more dish cloths. They are round and in the shape of flowers - just adorable. Each takes about two hours for me to knit but I do so during my downtime while watching t.v. - that is why it probably takes two hours because I have to keep track of rows, so I wait til the commercials. Anyway, I want to give away two bath sets to the moms of my sons' friends whom they often stay over with and as a housewarming to my girlfriend who sold her home and moved into a townhouse. I will keep and use one set for myself.
That big bag is just looking at me with an evil eye. I don't want any bags like this in my life anymore. Things need to be used and appreciated - not stored away for a rainy day in the future. I have started to use up my supply of lotions and creams and am finding that the five minutes I devote to myself in the morning to do so is a way cheap but well worth it luxury. I smell great all day and my dry winter skin is smooth. I am lighting candles during the day while I work on the computer and then again at night when the boys and I eat dinner and then they do homework. The candles glowing have taken away some of the gloom of winter.
I have also started work on cleaning and clearing out storage shed #2 of the original 3 - currently there are just 2. I am going to ruthless in what I decide to keep and discard. There are about 10 small boxes of my beloved grandmother's china that my mom gave me some years before she died. She knew I would appreciate the design because it is made up of orange flowers and orange is one of my favorite colors. I am strongly considering getting the boxes out of storage and displaying them in someway or just using them. Why not? What good are they doing sitting in storage? So what if one piece out of the eight piece set breaks? Isn't it better to use what we love and enjoy it fully?
I got this image of my boys having to clear out my clutter and knew without a doubt that all the lotions, creams and candles would wind up in a dumpster somewhere. So I am going to be non-frugal with what I already own and have. I'm going to use it up with no worries about waste or running out. I am going to appreciate the little luxuries I already have. I am experiencing an unexpected surge of pleasure whenever a candle burns down and I have to replace it and I use up a tube of the nice body lotion.
Today I am grateful:
1. For all of the excess in my life because it does represent a life of plenty even now during hard times.
2. For the spring catalogs appearing in the mail. I get inspired at looking at pretty things even not being able to afford them right now. And I get decorating and craft ideas for free too!
3. For all the free craft patterns I can access via the internet.
4. For warm, cozy and soft gloves.
5. For the scent of Johnson's Baby Lotion. I am using a cream that smells like this right now and it is very soothing.
3.
Monday, July 20, 2009
It's All Just a Pile of Junk!
I spent most of today consolidating two of my storage sheds into one. It was a long, hot, grueling, tiring and dirty job - not fun at all but it had to be done. I can't keep paying money to store stuff that needs to be sorted through and donated/thrown out.
The trouble with all of this started when I was planning to move with husband #2 and put items in storage in anticipation of that. But then my Mom died and my parent's house was sold. Because my Dad was also very sick, there wasn't time to go through the contents of their house before it sold (we only had two weeks) and I ended up taking boxes of items from their house and just putting it all into storage. But out of sight, out of mind. Everything has continued to sit in a 10 x 20 shed until now when I just can't put off going through my stuff, my parent's stuff and husband #1's stuff any longer. I can't afford it and with the prospect of moving, it has to be eliminated in case I need to store furniture or items that won't fit into an apartment.
Problem #2 - I just don't have much time to go through everything, which is why it has sat for the two years my Mom has been gone. Hopping on over to a storage facility to work on clearing out your parent's old belongings is not up there on the fun parade of things to do. It is depressing and sad to do so. Time consuming and grimy besides. And because the storage site is some miles away, it is another factor preventing much progress on the task.
One of my close girlfriends called me last night having just returned from a trip to her parent's home. She had spent a week there of vacation trying to clean up/clear out the home in preparation of selling it. Her dad is now in an assisted living facility and her mom passed away a few years back. She claimed to have not made much progress in her week there. I laughed as she described how her dad hoarded everything and collected pencils, pens, rubber bands, flashlights, pads of paper and the like. The same with my Dad! In my cleanup of their home, I found a paper bag with probably 500, if not more, book marks! But my parents were not as organized as my friend's parents. There were boxes in my parent's home with papers in them ranging from 1972 - 2002 in no particular order. That made going through things more difficult because I needed to look at all the contents of a box - couldn't just assume it was all from the early disco era!
In talking with my friend, I mentioned that what made me so sad is that the fact that my Dad now lives in an assisted living facility and has no trace of the former life he used to live around him. No need for his extensive pen, pencil and bookmark collection. It is like everything in my parent's home ended up not amounting to very much in the end. My girlfriend understood exactly what I meant - she felt the same way too as she visited her father in his assisted living facility.
In the end, the vast array of stuff we accumulate and surround ourselves with is just junk! Worthless and taking up unnecessary space in the storage sheds or garages of unfortunate relatives left to the task of sorting through all of it. My girlfriend who was divorced in March also has her home on the market to downsize. I commiserated with her that here we are trying to get through the junk in our own lives and also stuck with the task of dealing with the mess of our parents.
These observations have given me the impetus to get through the junk as quickly as possible and to not hold on to much - the bare minimum of memories. It is serving a bit as a guide to how I want to move forward from here - with less clutter and unnecessary items accumulating and stagnating my life.
Today I am grateful:
1. For fireflies.
2. For ladybugs.
3. For butterflies.
4. For cottage cheese with pineapple.
5. For raisin toast.
The trouble with all of this started when I was planning to move with husband #2 and put items in storage in anticipation of that. But then my Mom died and my parent's house was sold. Because my Dad was also very sick, there wasn't time to go through the contents of their house before it sold (we only had two weeks) and I ended up taking boxes of items from their house and just putting it all into storage. But out of sight, out of mind. Everything has continued to sit in a 10 x 20 shed until now when I just can't put off going through my stuff, my parent's stuff and husband #1's stuff any longer. I can't afford it and with the prospect of moving, it has to be eliminated in case I need to store furniture or items that won't fit into an apartment.
Problem #2 - I just don't have much time to go through everything, which is why it has sat for the two years my Mom has been gone. Hopping on over to a storage facility to work on clearing out your parent's old belongings is not up there on the fun parade of things to do. It is depressing and sad to do so. Time consuming and grimy besides. And because the storage site is some miles away, it is another factor preventing much progress on the task.
One of my close girlfriends called me last night having just returned from a trip to her parent's home. She had spent a week there of vacation trying to clean up/clear out the home in preparation of selling it. Her dad is now in an assisted living facility and her mom passed away a few years back. She claimed to have not made much progress in her week there. I laughed as she described how her dad hoarded everything and collected pencils, pens, rubber bands, flashlights, pads of paper and the like. The same with my Dad! In my cleanup of their home, I found a paper bag with probably 500, if not more, book marks! But my parents were not as organized as my friend's parents. There were boxes in my parent's home with papers in them ranging from 1972 - 2002 in no particular order. That made going through things more difficult because I needed to look at all the contents of a box - couldn't just assume it was all from the early disco era!
In talking with my friend, I mentioned that what made me so sad is that the fact that my Dad now lives in an assisted living facility and has no trace of the former life he used to live around him. No need for his extensive pen, pencil and bookmark collection. It is like everything in my parent's home ended up not amounting to very much in the end. My girlfriend understood exactly what I meant - she felt the same way too as she visited her father in his assisted living facility.
In the end, the vast array of stuff we accumulate and surround ourselves with is just junk! Worthless and taking up unnecessary space in the storage sheds or garages of unfortunate relatives left to the task of sorting through all of it. My girlfriend who was divorced in March also has her home on the market to downsize. I commiserated with her that here we are trying to get through the junk in our own lives and also stuck with the task of dealing with the mess of our parents.
These observations have given me the impetus to get through the junk as quickly as possible and to not hold on to much - the bare minimum of memories. It is serving a bit as a guide to how I want to move forward from here - with less clutter and unnecessary items accumulating and stagnating my life.
Today I am grateful:
1. For fireflies.
2. For ladybugs.
3. For butterflies.
4. For cottage cheese with pineapple.
5. For raisin toast.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Precious Possessions
I try to read an inspirational book every night before I go to bed. Currently I'm reading Alexandra Stoddard's "Time Alive, Celebrate Your Life Everyday." It is perfect reading for night because each chapter is a short essay reflecting on living a balanced, happy life. So even if I am tired I can manage to read a few pages and gain her wisdom/perspective. She is also the author of "Choosing Happiness," another gem.
In her chapter about our homes, Alexandra writes about some of her most sacred possessions. She lists her love letters, photographs of friends and family, gifts/objects from friends and family, scrapbooks, journals, unpublished manuscripts, her collection of well-read books and a gold pin that belonged to her best friend who died at age 44.
After I read this I decided to consider what my most sacred possessions are:
- photos/videos of family
- all art and schoolwork from when the boys were young
- gifts and cards my boys gave me
- craft projects the boys made that I display all over the house
- my decorative birdhouse collection
- old journals
- all my knitting books and patterns
- my mom's blue antique hobnail cup
- my vintage sampler collection
None of these things has any great monetary value but they are priceless to me. As I de-clutter out from years of accumulated "junk" in my home, I want to focus on all that is meaningful to me. Whether we remain living in this home or move elsewhere, I want to bring more of what is sacred into my life. As soon as I am able to have some free time to myself I will make it a priority to organize my photos into albums and put the boys' artwork and special school papers from when they were younger into scrapbooks. I will frame more of their artwork and put it on the walls; I will put the photo albums out where they can be looked at regularly.
I still have a lot on my plate right now to complete with the home (and then tackle the weeding/gardening outside). But I'll keep this goal in the back of my mind as incentive to keep plugging away with the hard part of the housework. It will be joyful to get to a point in my life where I can surround myself with what is most precious to me after having gotten rid of the stifling, less important stuff! I have read that to move forward, we need to sometimes get rid of all the clutter/stuff that is weighing us down. That getting rid of old items frees the space to let wonderful, new things in. What a posivie and hopeful concept!
Today I am grateful:
1. For the new day.
2. For the perspective I gain from others.
3. That we are all adjusting to my working and the boys are handling thisngs well with their summer schedules.
4. That we are healthy, knock on wood.
5. For my sacred possessions.
In her chapter about our homes, Alexandra writes about some of her most sacred possessions. She lists her love letters, photographs of friends and family, gifts/objects from friends and family, scrapbooks, journals, unpublished manuscripts, her collection of well-read books and a gold pin that belonged to her best friend who died at age 44.
After I read this I decided to consider what my most sacred possessions are:
- photos/videos of family
- all art and schoolwork from when the boys were young
- gifts and cards my boys gave me
- craft projects the boys made that I display all over the house
- my decorative birdhouse collection
- old journals
- all my knitting books and patterns
- my mom's blue antique hobnail cup
- my vintage sampler collection
None of these things has any great monetary value but they are priceless to me. As I de-clutter out from years of accumulated "junk" in my home, I want to focus on all that is meaningful to me. Whether we remain living in this home or move elsewhere, I want to bring more of what is sacred into my life. As soon as I am able to have some free time to myself I will make it a priority to organize my photos into albums and put the boys' artwork and special school papers from when they were younger into scrapbooks. I will frame more of their artwork and put it on the walls; I will put the photo albums out where they can be looked at regularly.
I still have a lot on my plate right now to complete with the home (and then tackle the weeding/gardening outside). But I'll keep this goal in the back of my mind as incentive to keep plugging away with the hard part of the housework. It will be joyful to get to a point in my life where I can surround myself with what is most precious to me after having gotten rid of the stifling, less important stuff! I have read that to move forward, we need to sometimes get rid of all the clutter/stuff that is weighing us down. That getting rid of old items frees the space to let wonderful, new things in. What a posivie and hopeful concept!
Today I am grateful:
1. For the new day.
2. For the perspective I gain from others.
3. That we are all adjusting to my working and the boys are handling thisngs well with their summer schedules.
4. That we are healthy, knock on wood.
5. For my sacred possessions.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Clean Sweep
A few years ago, I watched a British television series called "Clean Sweep" about organizing your home and de-cluttering. A team went into people's homes and pretty much cleared out the excess which was put into this machine called "the Crusher!" There was always a garage sale (in Britain they call them car boot sales) too. I really didn't like the show for a couple of reasons. I remember one episode where the team made a poor guy clear out his beloved childhood collection of Beatrix Potter figures. The guy was allowed to keep a few of his figures and was just crying. For Pete's sake, I thought, let him have his collection which was nicely displayed in a cabinet!
Then I remember an episode where an older middle-aged woman had lost her husband five years before. She had a boyfriend and they were living together or moving in together or something like that. The team just blasted this poor woman for not having cleaned up the clutter in her life (including all that remained from her deceased husband). I remember the woman gave the explanation that life had just moved on too quickly after her husband died and she hadn't been able to keep up. I think my husband had been dead a few years and I totally understood this woman's predicament. Too bad the Clean Sweep crew wasn't more sympathetic or understanding.
I feel very much this woman now as I go through the house and try to move on. It is going on six years since the death of my husband and so much happened that got in the way after his death as fate would have it (aging parents, a sick child, work, remarriage, divorce, my Mom dying, solo parenting...). Just as this woman in the Clean Sweep series, life kind of overtook me. For the longest while, one of the spare bedrooms downstairs couldn't be used because during my husband's three-year illness, whenever I didn't have a place for something I just threw it in there. That continued after his death too. I would stand at the door and throw whatever I didn't want to deal with in the room! I am totally serious about this, although I am laughing as I now write. Looking back it is so sad and funny - I am sure the Clean Sweep crew would have had a hey day about that one.
It is very hot and humid today and I've concentrated on getting rid of clothes in the spare closet so I can work upstairs in the air conditioning. It is hard for me to get rid of stuff in the first place and I struggle weeding out things now, especially anything that brings back a memory of my deceased husband. Today though I have the rule going on that I have to get rid of ANY clothing item with a drawstring waist. Why I even have a fair number of clothes with drawstring waist bands is troubling to me because they are not too flattering. But I guess they date back to the days of my husband's illness when I was so busy caring for him and the kids that I didn't have time to shop for myself and would just grab stuff off the racks without even trying them on. It strikes me as very appropriate and timely to pass those items on to the Goodwill donation center - they're from a painful part of my life and should be swept out!
Today I am grateful:
1. That hot weather naturally induces my desire to eat better and less, so I'm thinner in summer.
2. That the spare bedroom I talked about has been long cleared out and my oldest uses it as a music room for his drum set.
3. That even though it is hot and sticky at least it is not cold and snowing.
4. That I have a job and it has helped me get acclimated to the work force after time off.
5. For light body spray fragrances you can spritz on all day to cool off and freshen up.
Then I remember an episode where an older middle-aged woman had lost her husband five years before. She had a boyfriend and they were living together or moving in together or something like that. The team just blasted this poor woman for not having cleaned up the clutter in her life (including all that remained from her deceased husband). I remember the woman gave the explanation that life had just moved on too quickly after her husband died and she hadn't been able to keep up. I think my husband had been dead a few years and I totally understood this woman's predicament. Too bad the Clean Sweep crew wasn't more sympathetic or understanding.
I feel very much this woman now as I go through the house and try to move on. It is going on six years since the death of my husband and so much happened that got in the way after his death as fate would have it (aging parents, a sick child, work, remarriage, divorce, my Mom dying, solo parenting...). Just as this woman in the Clean Sweep series, life kind of overtook me. For the longest while, one of the spare bedrooms downstairs couldn't be used because during my husband's three-year illness, whenever I didn't have a place for something I just threw it in there. That continued after his death too. I would stand at the door and throw whatever I didn't want to deal with in the room! I am totally serious about this, although I am laughing as I now write. Looking back it is so sad and funny - I am sure the Clean Sweep crew would have had a hey day about that one.
It is very hot and humid today and I've concentrated on getting rid of clothes in the spare closet so I can work upstairs in the air conditioning. It is hard for me to get rid of stuff in the first place and I struggle weeding out things now, especially anything that brings back a memory of my deceased husband. Today though I have the rule going on that I have to get rid of ANY clothing item with a drawstring waist. Why I even have a fair number of clothes with drawstring waist bands is troubling to me because they are not too flattering. But I guess they date back to the days of my husband's illness when I was so busy caring for him and the kids that I didn't have time to shop for myself and would just grab stuff off the racks without even trying them on. It strikes me as very appropriate and timely to pass those items on to the Goodwill donation center - they're from a painful part of my life and should be swept out!
Today I am grateful:
1. That hot weather naturally induces my desire to eat better and less, so I'm thinner in summer.
2. That the spare bedroom I talked about has been long cleared out and my oldest uses it as a music room for his drum set.
3. That even though it is hot and sticky at least it is not cold and snowing.
4. That I have a job and it has helped me get acclimated to the work force after time off.
5. For light body spray fragrances you can spritz on all day to cool off and freshen up.
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