Doesn’t that sound wonderful?!
I’ve felt a heavy burden on my body for most of my life. I’ve come to realize that it mostly has been due to being surrounded by so much “stuff.” And it wasn’t all of mine. My family always held onto so much and the more acquisitions only led to more burdens in various ways. I have accumulated so much in my own home, including much from my childhood, that I’ve begun purging items to create more space to breathe. My home hasn’t looked like a hoarders’ home because both my husband and I were raised in homes with so much “stuff” around us and we never wanted that for ourselves; however, we still have managed to acquire many things.
A year ago a two week old kitten came into our lives and has made our home a livelier place and insists on following his big sister around, chasing her, and playing with her. I have seen so many things through his eyes; just as a human parent sees the world in a different light when they have a child. Once he was on the move he was into everything; unlike our other cat, his sister. She was so calm and didn’t go on furniture or chew on anything when she was younger. Once he began jumping on furniture, tables, and counters, everything within his reach had to go to higher ground and behind closed doors. I had to child-proof my home. There still are areas where he enjoys doing some devilish things but that’s okay; he’s only a year old and playful as kittens are. Through him I have truly enjoyed having minimal things in my main living areas. I don’t miss all of those decorations which I once had sitting around and I don’t have anything on my coffee table (it’s now a table for kitties to lay on and play) and my end table in the living room only has a lamp and I absolutely love it all! The simplicity and minimalism is wonderful! For almost ten years I have been saying that “less is more” and it truly is!
I’ve been binge-reading books on decluttering, minimalism, and letting things go and I have crazily begun sorting through so much in my home to remove things from our home. I feel a weight lifting away from me and I see a better life around the corner. The “stuff” we accumulate throughout our lives doesn’t always enhance our lives; it seems to just tie us down and burden our souls. The more we have the more we must take care of. These items will hinder us in so many ways and we get emotions tied up into everything we own which makes it increasingly difficult to “let it all go” and really enjoy life. I read Let it Go by Peter Walsh and I highly recommend this particular book. This book tackles the emotional roadblocks which we all have to our “stuff” and it helped me to release the emotional hold which items have over me. I have learned so much from what I’ve read in this book, taken notes about really good points he made, and I’m now facing and conquering my fears of releasing items out of my life in a much healthier way. I will say that reading this book before you are faced with a stressful life-event is a wonderful thing. I feel better prepared to release so much out of my life!
If something is painful to look at then surely you must rid it from your possession. While going through so much in my attic I found my childhood diaries and found that point to be true. I decided that I would read them one last time before relinquishing them to the ashes and I quickly discovered my painful memories and feelings returning; things which I had successfully put into my past and forgotten and so I did not finish reading all of them; they quickly went to the flames. To have them gone permanently in that way has provided such a great feeling which is hard to describe. And I have a greater appreciation for so much more positivity in my life now.
I no longer desire to be the “keeper” of so many family heirlooms. Those things now must go to someone else – it is a huge emotionally-draining responsibility and burden on my heart and soul. That feeling has been with me all of my life; especially when I was constantly told about so many items which I shouldn’t give to anyone else. What a relief to finally have acceptance of that particular feeling and to no longer fear or worry about keeping those things. I have a great feeling of being light-weight and burden-free. The emotional guilt no longer will have a hold on me!
I admit that Let it Go by Peter Walsh has helped me to confront my feelings head-on and I’ve realized all the energy which I have wasted over my lifetime concerning “stuff” has had such a negative effect on my health and well-being and kept me grounded in only one spot without the ability to move forward and do things to enrich my life. I don’t want things to hold me down in the sand anymore – that’s not what we should waste our lives doing. The best approach is to begin to disconnect feelings from our objects. If the item is useful to you in some way and you know it will enrich your life then keeping it is okay. Otherwise if you have no use for it just recycle it in some way; get it someplace where it may find a new home and be beneficial to someone else.
You will find that giving the item to a charity or another person is a such a blessing in so many ways including a blessing to yourself!
