This decluttering streak I am on is going well. I have completely un-babied our home, and I have moved on to other areas of the house. Its been going very well. Actually, I’ll correct myself here, it WAS going very well. I started going through the book case and found Gretchin Rubin’s book ‘Happier at Home’ on the bookshelf, and lets just say that I got a teeny bit distracted.
The issue here is that I have a thing for books. I have always loved reading, and I have always found it difficult to pass on books. I can only imagine how hard it would be for a fashionista to pass on clothes and shoes, but it’s not really about how many books or how many pieces of clothing or shoes we have though, its all about what the possessions do for us. Does the accumulation of possessions add to our happiness in life?
Ironically, the first chapter of ‘Happier at Home’ is called ‘September: Possessions’. What do our things mean to us? While it may seem that Gretchin was referring to the idea that we should completely getting rid of all those things we don’t use, or don’t want. Surprisingly, it is not. We all acquire things we don’t really want or need over time, but it is more about what you want your life to look like and how your possessions play apart in that. I personally love the minimalist look. You have exactly what you need – nothing more. Nothing less. The idea of housing excess stuff frustrates me and the idea of dusting things, and cleaning around things I don’t really want or care for annoys me. I’d rather have less than more. Some might say that life seems simpler with less.
Decluttering is far more than organising our home’s. There’s a process to it, thats far more than putting away things we want to keep, or chuck out things we want to pass on. There’s something about decluttering thats simply good for your soul. I find I get my best ideas when I spend time decluttering. I usually keep a notebook nearby so that I can write down my ideas as I go . The best thing about decluttering is the freedom I feel when I move on those things we no longer need. I don’t think I can relay the joy I felt as I packed up our baby items. It truly was a wonderful feeling, but the thing I love the most is knowing we are helping somebody else. We don’t have money to throw at charities, but what I can do is share what we have, and that is a great feeling. My favorite saying in the world is ‘See a Need, Fill a need’. In some small way, I hope we can help fill others needs by passing on those things we consider ‘clutter’.
There are so many ways to ‘fill a need’ in our world, and recently I came across this really simple, but revolutionary idea on how to help people on the streets. Its a concept that started on the streets of South Africa, but through social media and world news – the idea has gone globally crazy.
Recently I found this video that really touched my heart. I’d love for you to watch it and let me know your thoughts. Maybe our efforts in decluttering can really make a difference in more than one person’s life.
