It's a Special Occasion

I've had these dishes since I was in high school. They were part of my "hope chest", if you will. There were many other things in the "hope chest" which I have slowly decluttered over the last year. However, these dishes stayed and sat in the cabinet waiting for special occasions. Whatever that meant... I used them when friends came over and I would prepare full meals. Otherwise they never saw the light of day. I had my every day dishes which I used for myself. I finally decided, after reading many a blog that pointed the concept out, that every day is a special occasion to be celebrated and I shouldn't save these dishes for some magical event that rarely occurs. So... Out with the every day, in with the special occasions! 

Things That Matter, Stuff That Works

Things That Matter. Stuff That Works. Two songs that I have loved for many years, which have taken on deeper meaning as I’ve worked to simplify my life. I imagine the words ring true to most people on a simple journey.

De-owning half of your possessions will give you perspective on the ‘things that matter’ – tangible and intangible. It will also give you a greater appreciation for the ‘stuff that works’.

I own many things which fall into those categories. A dresser which belonged to my oldest cousin as a child; it has belonged to four cousins over the course of four decades. My grandmother’s cedar chest. The desk my grandfather built in his high school shop class. These things matter, they have history and “spark joy” as Kondo would say. And they also work! Consumer culture tells us these things should be replaced, updated, super-sized but doing so doesn’t satisfy. Deep down, no matter how much we financially buy into the lie, we know that’s not what matters.

Simplifying my life has made it easier to enjoy the ‘things you can share’. My home is a more welcoming place to others. It is easier to clean and to maintain the welcoming environment. I have more time to be hospitable to my guests and enjoy their presence. Having such a home has always been important to me and I never realized how the excess was getting in the way of that goal.

Going forward in my simple life I want to focus more on the things I keep, and less on what I’m getting rid of. More about what I allow in, than what I need to send out. More on the ‘stuff that’s real’!

Tidy Magic

Tidy Magic… that could work as a Tiny Bubbles parody… next post! For now, let’s talk about what everyone in the decluttering/simplifying/minimizing world has already talked about: The LifeChanging Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo.

Tidy Magic came into my life via Audible circa March 2015. The minimalist bug was in my ear due to a close friend and I had a LOT of stress in my life. It seemed to make sense that, though the “stuff” wasn’t the source of my stress, less “stuff” could still equal less stress.

I love stuff. I had (still have) lots of stuff. Children’s books, stuffed animals, and clothes I hadn’t worn in a decade. I also had an emotional attachment to all of this stuff. I’m talking psychological issue attachment. This is where tidy magic came in.

I admit the book was odd at times. The idea of thanking “stuff” I should have gotten rid of LONG ago seemed bizarre, at best. But I was determined to listen with an open mind. I listened as I decluttered:

-          size 0 (insert hysterical laughter here) jeans,

-          clothes with tags I knew I would never wear,

-          hard-earned trophies (from over a decade ago),

-          gifts I no longer wished to keep.

While I didn’t go so far as to thank every item I let go of I did learn to appreciate the purpose things served in a given time and space, realizing they didn’t have to fit into the current time and space. I could be grateful for a gift, and still let it go. I could be proud of an achievement, and still let it go. I could accept the lesson of a bad purchase, and still let it go.

Another thing that stuck with me as I listened to Tidy Magic were the cultural differences and how steeped my culture is in consumerism. This is something obvious yet it hit home to me more after listening to Kondo. Not only did Tidy Magic change my relationship with the stuff I own, but it also changed my purchasing decisions. It changed how I give gifts, how I decorate my home, and how extensive my wardrobe is. I still desire and purchase nice things but I am much more discerning of what is a want versus what is a need, and far less prone to impulse purchases that will end in a decluttering heap!

I’ll be sharing more in the future on how decluttering and simplifying has improved my quality of life, thanks in part to Tidy Magic. I’ll also share some of the things I did NOT declutter. J Until next time… travel lightly.  

Post the First

¡ Hola! ¡ Bienvenido! I think this is where I am supposed to make the pitch? Bait the hook? Convince you this is the next great blog on some subject or another… get you signed up for the weekly subscription! Unfortunately, much as I would love to, I can't do that. Like the author, this blog hasn't yet decided what it wants to be when it grows up.

For now this is a place to share my thoughts. I've always used writing as a means of expressing myself but I have rarely shared those writings. They wind up in File 13, literally or digitally. Over the last several months I have been running into the idea of sharing your story, that someone might need your story. So, here I am, adding my story to the Internet cacophony.

I am lately into the idea of simplifying my life, physically as well as mentally. I am a traveler. These things will feature heavily in my posts - thus the name! I am a bibliophile, and a tapophile. I suspect those things will be featured at some point. You'll just have to stay tuned to find out!

My goal is to post weekly, on Tuesday's. Because I can't improve on Mondays. ;-) See you next week for the first "real" entry.

 

~ C