Can someone explain to me how a person who came to this county with 3 suitcases to her name, would need to rent a U haul Van to move all her things out of her 1 bedroom after just 1.5 years of being back???
How is it that we tend to accumulate things that seem to matter a whole lot when we buy them and then lose their attraction, slip under the radar to the back of the closet or under the bed, where we are no longer influenced by them?
How in the world, are we able to fit ALL those things we accumulate in one small bedroom, and then when we move, it just seems to explode into 3 bedrooms worth of stuff?
And if you have the tenacity to answer those three questions, answer me this:
How do you decide what to keep and what not to keep? The million-dollar question, right?
I was unnerved by the amount of “stuff” I had accumulated. I know that sounds like I am a pack rat. I am not – I periodically give away things that I am not using or tired of using, and have donated to Goodwill a fairly decent amount each year. But even still, I was appalled at the number of boxes I had to move! The one thing I will make no excuses for keeping are my BOOKS! They are my treasures! They have always been!
Back to things to keep and things to not keep. Is there a particular method to the madness? How do you distinguish between what you keep and what you give away and what you throw out? Do you give away things that you have not used in over a year or so? Like clothes you hope to fit into again but just know that is not going to happen; shoes that are starting to look tattered but no one can tell in the dark and they are oh so comfy to dance in; a drawer full of big loose old, tshirts that may even have holes in them, that you are saving for when you do that garden project or when you paint, but has not happened in over 2 years?
How about those old magazines that promise the greatest of articles that you have always wanted to read, yet they are collecting dust in a pile under your bed; or a ragged plastic bag that is filled with telephone cables, USB cables, AV three pin cables, wires, adapters, old cell phone chargers to phones you no longer have? Or even, that old filing box with bills and statements to accounts long closed and houses that you no longer live in, or old car maintenance statements to a car that you sold a few years ago? We never throw them away because we only realize we have them when we are moving and it is too stressful to take the time to sit down and go through all that piece by piece. We tell ourselves, we’ll throw that out after I move into the new place. Yeah riiight!!!
So, people, tell me how you have gotten rid of those dust-covered, cobweb-ridden things? What do you put in your Keep pile and your Toss pile?
I AM a pack rat. I hold on to everything that I use or has meaning to me for as long as possible. I get rid of anything I do not or will not use. My most valuable possession is knowing I have a loving family, that they will always be there for me and the memories we share from experiences growing up. This is in the form of pictures and letters stashed away in my closet. I will hold onto these for the rest of my life. My behavior has also led me to accumulate books, old class work, notes and ideas that I think will be useful in my life. During my drive home for Thanksgiving and Christmas I am given time to reflect. I look forward to sifting through my possessions, adding to my imagination the potential to impact the future, all the while remaining humble by sharing and always being thankful for what I have.
I AM a pack rat. I hold on to everything that I use or has meaning to me for as long as possible. I get rid of anything I do not or will not use. My most valuable possession is knowing I have a loving family, that they will always be there for me and the memories we share from experiences growing up. This is in the form of pictures and letters stashed away in my closet. I will hold onto these for the rest of my life. My behavior has also led me to accumulate books, old class work, notes and ideas that I think will be useful in my life. During my drive home for Thanksgiving and Christmas I am given time to reflect. I look forward to sifting through my possessions, adding to my imagination the potential to impact the future, all the while remaining humble by sharing and always being thankful for what I have.