De-cluttering

My house looks like a bomb went off in it.  I like to think that after the holidays EVERYONE'S house looks a little like this - the profusion of decorations, once bright and merry, now dim and forlorn. The  general stuff that seems to accumulate during this time - dishes, remnants of presents, laundry, rows of empty booze bottles, Uncle Sam's toupee (that fell off when he was sleeping off the turkey after Christmas Dinner) - you know, the usual stuff.  Things don't get put back where they belong, and you say "meh, I'll get to it. It's the holidays! I can do whatevah I want!" So little by little, it builds up and before you know it: CLUTTER APOCALYPSE!  I can't be the only one, right?? *Pleeeeeease tell me I'm not alone ;) *...



I've always seemed to have clutter around me, and while I can handle it for a bit, after awhile it really gets on my nerves.  The problem is, by the time it gets on my nerves, it has become such a huge problem that I have a panic attack over where to begin! And so I put it off, and the problem only gets worse. Until the day that you are climbing onto the kitchen table to get over the pile of laundry that has seeped everywhere like a bad flood in your basement, or you can't find the front door anymore because there's a giant inflatable palm tree in front of it that your cousin gave you as a gag gift.  And how about those dust bunnies?  Giant tumbleweeds parading through your home like they own it. It's like an old Western movie, I swear!  Ok, I'm exaggerating a little on these examples, but you get my drift.  It's not just the messy stuff that is bothersome, it's the also the clutter of objects.   Clutter seems to not only take up physical space, but mental space too.  How, you ask?  Well, (and this is just my own opinion) when there is a ton of clutter around, I feel as though the room gets smaller, there's less available air, and precious time is taken  up in my  head, thinking about all the stuff, where it should go, undone tasks (aka Mental Clutter) etc.

There's something to be said for clearing space, both physically and mentally.  There comes a time when you really need to take a look at all the crap you've got and decide, "do I REALLY need that?"  I'm learning to let go of material stuff.   Things I've held onto that I no longer have a connection to or don't hold a purpose in my life.  It really is cathartic to just release these objects and take note of how much better I feel, mentally.  There is a part of me that wants to hoard things, but I'm starting to realize how damaging that is, on many different levels.   I'm sure there's a deeper meaning to the hoarding of material possessions with some psycho-babble reason, but all I know is that it makes me cluttered myself.  I love going into a bright, airy room (ie the yoga studio) and just noting the difference in the energies compared to a room that is full of unnecessary clutter and objects.  It is actually quite jarring.   Try it yourself sometime, and you'll see what I mean. 

All that being said, it's not an easy task to let material objects go.  Some are easier to pitch than others, and it can be a Pandora's Box of emotions - both amusement and grief at what I'm having difficulty in releasing.  Those super ratty knickers?  Really? You'd think it was an easy task tossing those bad boys, but I'm actually dismayed at how much I really want to keep them.  They've full of holes, the elastic has gone on them, the once colourful pattern of butterflies have now faded to grey UFOs.  I keep thinking I might need them for something (for what, I don't know) but I'm having a tough time letting them go.  Silly, right? I know that once I do toss them, I'll feel better.  So that's what I'm doing today.  Going through my stuff, cleaning and clearing out, one object at a time.  Soon, I will be happy and rewarded for my efforts with a clearer space and clearer mind.  But for now, I will grieve the loss of my old knickers - we've been through a lot together, baby!