What would you do if you had to move?
Our neighbors on the street are moving. The moving truck and storage POD have been outside your house since the early hours of the morning. A lot of commotion when they take things out to take them or put them away.
The day is beautiful, the sun is shining brightly with a light breeze. It seems more spring than winter. You couldn’t ask for a better day to move in. Don’t worry about rain or cold.
With my windows open for fresh air, I could hear their thumping and grunting, as they pushed and shoved their things out of their house to the waiting open doors.
As I stood and watched from this vantage point, I wondered…
If I had to move, what would it take? How many boxes would I need to pack all my things? How many hours of preparation? What size truck would I need? How long to download and save everything?
And how many trips to Goodwill or the dump to get rid of all the excess?
I have to admit it gave me chills to think about it. After 17 years here, the longest I have lived anywhere, we have accumulated much more than when we arrived.
We have managed to fill every room and closet in our house with more things than we would need in several lifetimes. Things that seemed useful, necessary and necessary when we bought or kept them.
Each room has wall to wall furniture. A wall was opened and we managed to fill it with another bookcase, table, wardrobe, sofa or chair.
Over the years we have moved the rooms to give them a fresh new perspective. We got rid of a much-loved (can you say well-worn?) sofa and replaced it with two chairs. Gone was the coffee table, which had become more of a nuisance than a necessary piece of furniture. And he moved various pieces from room to room, which often meant the backbreaking work of managing the stairs.
Now I wonder: what would happen if, back then, instead of managing the stairs with another object, we had gotten rid of it?
Much of what we have, we don’t really need or use anymore. Our bedrooms and closets, not to mention the garage, could be made smaller to contain much less. In fact, much of what we have in our 2,000 square foot home could be scaled down to fit in less than 1,000 square feet.
So why not do that, you ask?
Good question. He’s one that I say to myself, as I wander around my house, opening cupboards and cupboards, “What the hell is in here and why do I need it?”
Just to be clear and not mislead, I too am a work in progress. Those who follow my weekly “Tidy Up Tuesdays” on Facebook Live, or watch my YouTube videos on the subject, may think I have it all down.
I have to laugh at the idea, because, here’s the real truth…
You’re never done.
The process of cleaning, cleaning, tidying up and organizing the mess is a DAILY task, routine and commitment. There’s no “one and done” when it comes to your stuff.
Even if you were to reduce your possessions to 52 items (as some minimalists do), you still have to decide at each moment what those 52 items will be. What if a new interest or article arises? What are you going to give up to have it? What are you going to throw away? What will you keep? Or will you now make it 53 items?
Most of us would simply increase the number of items we own or currently own.
If you’re ready to pare down your stuff, here’s where I’d guide you to get started: Visualize.
Yes, even before you take action to purge, sort, organize, visualize what you want that area to look like when it’s ready.
Don’t go shopping for containers. Don’t build more shelves. Do not throw indiscriminately. Do not store it in a closet or move it to another room.
Stop. Take a deep breath and decide what you really want there. What would be the ideal? What’s its purpose?
And keep in mind the most important thing: decluttering is a daily task that requires vision, focus, intention and diligence.
But for now, just for today, let’s start with his vision.
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