#simplicity minimalism

At the start of the year, I was determined to cut out clutter in my life and for motivation, I had an idea to post a photo of one item every day that I was removing from my home.  While I was getting rid of something everyday, I quickly realized that plugging in to blog about stuff I was getting rid of only contributed to my mental clutter and that endeavor was short lived.  

I thought that blogging about un-owning each item would make it easier for me to say good bye to them.  I recall how I’ve come to acquire these items, and why I’ve held onto them for so long.  Kind of like a eulogy for my stuff. Many times I hold on to things I don’t use for sentimental reasons- I like the gift giver for example- or out of fear of losing something I may eventually need.

When I was a little girl, my mother gave a neighborhood boy my favorite marble. I didn’t have a lot of toys then, and I loved this marble- it was a cat eye shooter with beautiful veins of browns and purples. I was heartbroken. To deal with the loss, I drew a picture of the marble from memory and posted it on the wall of the bedroom I shared with my sisters. Remarkably, I felt better just having an image of the item, as crudely drawn as it was (I was no more than 6 years old). I’d visit my drawing, think about my marble and the fun we had and it would make me happy to simply have something by which to remember it.

I think of that experience and realize that when it comes to my stuff, I haven’t changed much from that 6 year old girl. I still struggle with parting with things I don’t need, as I think many people do, but somehow being mindful about what and why I own something has made it easier to let it go.  I took photos of the stuff I let go, though I never referred to them again.

In my desire to simplify, I created unnecessary work for myself and allowed unwanted material items to continue to occupy space in my life, if just in a photo album.  I never looked back, but I wasn’t unlike the wife of Lot who did:  I continued to place too much value on the things I unowned.  I collected marble drawings to give myself a safety net should I regret letting go; I gave myself permission to regret.