One of the standard tenets of minimalism is getting rid of excess things. I have to admit, I enjoy a good clothing purge. At least twice a year, when the seasons change (because we only have two seasons in South Georgia: sweating while wearing shorts and sweating while wearing boots and flannel) I go through my clothes and decide what to keep and what to donate. It gives me a rush! I know, weird. But I’m not a numb minimalist robot. Things have emotional value. I believe we were designed this way by a Creator who loves that we have cherished memories. He even had the nation of Israel put special mementos in a box to always remind them how great He is and how loved they were! (Ark of the Covenant, anybody?) What happens when your cherished memories are crowding your closet and overflowing into all corners of your home and you just feel like you’re living in chaos?
When you go through any area of your home, whether it's the closet, the kitchen, or that one junk closet that we pretend we don’t have, there are only so many things you can do with your stuff. You can keep it and use it, keep it and not use it, or get rid of it (donate, sell, or trash). I’m a big believer that anything left out in the main spaces of your home should be frequently enjoyed items. A home that brings peace comes from having the right balance of these three outcomes for your belongings. I’m a proponent of using the Rule of 1.5 to decide what to keep out, but I realize that most people can’t operate based on a formula alone. I can’t either. So we keep extra stuff out of habit or guilt, or just because keeping the things makes us feel happy. But what if so many things bring you happiness that you’re living in a crammed house that’s turning cherished memories into chaos? As I’ve cleared through my house and talked to friends about their process for clearing through the house, I’ve isolated a few emotions surrounding clearing through the chaos: happiness, guilt, and dread.
Happiness
When you look around at all the things in your home, what brings you happiness? What knick-knacks make you smile? What clothes make you feel uh-may-zing? These are things that you need to keep! If you have a place for it and/or it fits into your Rule of 1.5 then keep it out where it can be seen, cherished, and used. You don’t need to keep out all the things that bring you happiness. When we were engaged, Husband bought me a “just because” card that has a sparkly heart on it. I love that card and will treasure it forever. After my grandmother passed away I inherited a pair of red shoes she bought when we were shopping together. I was pushing her wheelchair and we saw them at the same time, but because I was pushing her she nabbed them first and claimed them. She was a tricky one! I love both of these things, but they seriously do not need to be out in my house. So, I have a “special box” for all the invaluable items I’ve collected over the years. This box sits at the back of the closet, and Husband and I stow our special items away in there as we go through life. Note: this is a special box in a closet, not the entire closet itself. Another solution I love is to print and hang up a picture that reminds you of precious memories. That way, you can get rid of the physical item but keep that cherished memory on display. I will never ever advocate for being a minimalist when it comes to hanging photographs!
Guilt
More often than we’d like to admit, the objects we have can make us feel guilty. Turns out, after Baby Boy was born my milk never came in. Breastfeeding ended very abruptly and very badly. It was devastating, and a really long story. The mom-guilt surrounding that was so intense. And for some reason I kept a stack of nursing pads in my dresser drawer. I felt I had failed him, and they were a daily reminder of that. As soon as I put all the nursing items away, I felt so much better. Please don’t let things control you and keep you in bondage to guilt and shame. Jesus came so you could have life and have it abundant. Don’t let things come between you and the life, love, peace, and security that Jesus wants for you. Whether it’s the pants you no longer fit into, the exercise equipment gathering dust, or relics of a past life that brings you shame, these items hold so much emotional power over us. They need to go, dear friend!
Sometimes the guilt we feel isn’t over our own perceived inadequacies. It’s because someone we love very dearly gave us a gift that meant a lot to them, but didn’t mean so much to us. Maybe it was a birthday gift or that waffle iron you NEEDED on your registry when you were getting married. Girl, I get it. We had a waffle iron lurking on the top shelf of a kitchen cabinet for years. I bet you still remember who bought you that waffle iron and they make you smile, don’t they? How about this: print out a picture of that loved one to hang on your wall, and donate the waffle iron.
Dread
Just like with guilt, I bet a lot of the items that fill you with dread can be donated or trashed. If it’s not essential or frequently used and you dread even looking at the thing, there’s no sense in keeping it. Being perfectly transparent, the workout clothes in my dresser fill me with dread. I hate working out. I hate sweating. I hate having to re-do my hair after. Thank goodness for dry shampoo, right? So am I going to donate those clothes? No, I actually use them. Not every item in our home that fills us with dread automatically needs to be eliminated. For those essential items that you dread even looking at try to find a different place for them. We’ve moved the scale from our bathroom to the guest bathroom. I’ve created an organization system for my workout clothes so that, while the clothes don’t make me happy, at least I can enjoy the organization. What can you do with those dreadful essential items to make keeping them a little less emotionally painful?
As you go through your house, one area at a time, trying to get rid of the excess I urge you to pay attention to the way you feel. These feelings alongside the Rule of 1.5 can help you curate a home that brings you peace and happiness.
Comments
Post a Comment