It is spring cleaning time, but this year, my spring cleaning has
turned into purging, serious purging. An article I read recently has really
added fuel to my purging fire. Additional fire was added by a recent segment I
saw about a young woman who is attempting to live a zero-waste life. Over
the last month or so, I've been giving a lot of thought to the
"stuff" I've accumulated over the years. I must admit first that I
come by my tendency to acquire stuff naturally. My mother has always had a lot
of things, stuff. I tease her that she doesn't try to keep up with the Joneses,
she IS the Joneses. Always the first in the neighborhood to get a new gadget or
kitchen tool, she was the first person I knew who had one of the earliest
mobile phones. It was a bag phone she kept in the glove compartment. She had
one of the first VCRs. She has about ten cameras, including one that is a
binocular camera combination. Even at 90 years old, she is still a clothes
horse. Confined to a wheelchair, she still comes downstairs each day in
matching clothes, complete with jewelry. So, I guess I can say honestly that I came by my love of clothes,
shoes and other stuff, genetically.
Nearly ten years ago, I lost my last
full-time job. I was pushed out for my younger replacement. I had been
fortunate to have made good money for years so I bought most of the things I
wanted and all of the things I "thought" I needed. Working as a
technology director, I had a budget that enabled me to be on the forefront of
new and upcoming technology. I had the latest computer, software and mobile
technology. It was transformative when I lost my job. Reduced to a mere
fraction of the income I had made for years, I was unable to "keep
up" with the latest and greatest. I had racks of clothing and shoes but I
was unable to constantly supplement my clothing and shoe wardrobe. Along the
way, I discovered that much of what I thought I "needed" was
unneeded.
Over the years of my forced frugality, I
realized how much the media and society pushes at us "stuff" that we
think we need. The first place I noticed this was in mobile phones. People
spend hundreds of dollars on the latest iPhone only for a new model to be
released nine months later and, of course, one MUST get the newer one. Every
year, clothing designers and manufacturers come out with the latest
"trends." People rush out to buy new clothing so that their clothing
does not look dated. Funny thing, though, clothing and shoes styles are
recirculated. For example, wedge shoes are all the rage now. They were also the
rage about six years ago before the new rage became 6-inch heels. The maxi
dresses of the 70's and 80's are back now. How long do we chase current styles
until we realize we have been had? About 15 years ago, I purchased a
smoothie-maker from QVC. My son and I had fun making different fruit smoothies.
Smoothies are once again the rage and the media is pushing new gadgets at us,
at twice the price I paid, that will juice and make smoothies. Funnily, I still
have my old smoothie-maker.
The recent stories mentioned at the
beginning of this post caused an epiphany of sorts for me. For those of us who
have been gainfully employed, we travel along our adult life collecting
"things" We buy art. We buy gadgets. We buy knickknacks. We buy book
after book to add to our library. We buy music to build our music library. We
buy furniture. We buy clothes and shoes. We sit at the end of the day and feel
proud of ourselves at being able to buy the stuff of life. At the end of day,
what do we really gain from all this buying of stuff. Yes, we have nice décor
in our homes. Yes, we have our collections of knickknacks, bells, clowns,
coins, stamps, etc. It's as if we gain a badge that shouts "look at me;
look at what I've been able to accumulate." But, at the end of day, what
have we really gained? What have we missed out on in our attempt, in our race,
to gain all of this stuff?
So, the purge has begun. I've long had a
rule that if I've not used it or worn it in two years, I donate it. This year, I'm going further, deeper.
I'm purging my home of the stuff that is not vital to my well-being. I firmly
believe that all this stuff has been blocking my creativity, blocking my
blessings. I rarely drink or entertain – out goes the stemware I've collected
for years. I'm tired of dusting knickknacks that really serve no purpose. Out
they go. I've practically lived in jeans for nearly ten years –out goes half of
my shoe collection. I live in a large house with a dining room that is only
used at most twice a year. I have a guestroom that is only used maybe twice a
year. My third bedroom is a library/office which houses mainly hundreds of
books, most of which I've not reread. I'm downsizing my living space. I don't
need a three-bedroom, nearly 2,500 square feet house for one person.
It is a cleansing feeling. The more I
purge, the more I feel my energy surging. The creativity and blessings are sure
to follow.
Blessings,
Tee
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