Sunday, May 6, 2012

Cut the Clutter: Part 1

I hate clutter. Nothing ruins my mood faster than tripping over unnecessary items scattered about the house. I hate when things don't have a place (even if I don't actually take the incentive to put them there - it's nice to know they have a "home"), and I hate useless stuff.

Now, I've seen the tv shows where they go into the home of a complete clutterholic and it's absolutely horrific. My home is not even close to that bad. In fact, if I was a cleaner person in general and kept my house tidy, you probably wouldn't even know that I had so much clutter hidden away. But I do. It's lurking in cabinets, cupboards, and drawers. It's under the bed and in the closets. It's stashed in the attic. And yes, some of it is out in the open because I have simply run out of room. There is clutter everywhere.

On the flip side of the clutterholics I see on tv, I have also read blogs and stories about people who have completed the 100 item challenge. The idea is that you get your personal belongings down to only 100 things. Some people did this quite literally (3 plates, 2 bowls, etc.), while others had general categories (plates = 1, bowls = 1). I was drawn to this idea for a while, but I think that putting a number on it would stress me out even more.

I have also heard about the strategy of putting things you aren't sure if you want to get rid of but hardly use into a well-labeled box (listing the items and the date they were put inside) and putting it in the attic/basement. If, after a year, you still have not opened the box, then just take it to the nearest thrift shop and donate it. Don't even open it. I like this idea, but have never really had the follow through to do it. (Although we have a lot of stuff in the attic that I have no idea what it is, so I'm pretty sure that a lot of it will be donated anyway). 

The truth is, as much as I hate to admit it, I LOVE stuff. I love having trinkets and decorations. I like the memories that come from old quilts or the painted wind chimes my nephews made me. So yes, "stuff" is important to me. Or, at least, some of it is.

But there comes a time when too much stuff becomes a bigger problem than finding storage space. It's when you become dependent on stuff and stop seeking out provision from God alone. I have been struggling with this with many of the things that I've been holding onto. For example, I had two bed skirts (you know, the ruffly things that go around the bottom of the bed so it looks pretty and you can't tell what hidden stuff monsters are lurking underneath). I bought them years ago (when I was single and living alone and cared about things looking pretty) because I couldn't decide what color I wanted. Here's the thing: I only have one bed. And I've been holding on to both of these bed skirts, but only using one. Ever. The other is in its original packaging. This might not seem ridiculous to those who don't move very often, but I have moved several times over the past six years and have moved this unused bed skirt around with me. (Note: for about two years of this time, I was living at camp and not using my own bed - or either bed skirt). What if I changed my mind about the color? What if something happens to the other one? Okay, I'll admit that this is a silly example, but the point is I hold on to things because I want to be prepared for the "what if." I want to make sure that I am never without. So, instead, I am drowning in excess. Even though I don't have financial abundance, I have materialism out the ears.(Does that sentence even make sense? I only used "ears" because I am not sure of the correct spelling of "wazoo.") And while this may not be true for some people, for me it comes down to a lack of trust. I don't always trust that God will provide for my needs. So I chain myself to things and seek out provision from various items that I buy or collect. I own eight million blankets - I will never be cold! (or ever have room in my cedar chest). I depend on all of this stuff, as if it is some sort of demonstration of my ability to survive and thrive. This is when clutter stops being a physical issue and becomes a heart issue.

We have officially turned in our two months notice on our lease. In the middle of July, we will be moving out of this apartment, and at this moment we have no idea where we will be going. We might be moving into a different apartment, or we might be moving in with family. Regardless, the idea of packing up some of this stuff and moving it started to seem a little pointless. So I am embarking on the great decluttering of 2012!

I woke up this morning all excited for my project. I decided to tackle the kitchen first (more on that in a later post). I was going to free myself from this addiction to things and make some much needed room in the cabinets. It was going to be liberating! I only forgot one important thing - to tell my husband what I planned to do. So today, D woke up and got blindsided by my giant piles consuming the kitchen. It turns out, I failed to explain to him why I felt the need to get rid of things, and he wasn't quite prepared. Lesson learned on my end. Fortunately, we worked it out and the Clutter Elimination Project is well under way.

There are some areas that we have agreed not to mess with. For example: books. We both love books. And while I periodically go through mine and get rid of the ones I no longer want, we still have hundreds of books, and many more on our wishlists. But, as a family, we have decided that reading is extremely important to us and we want our children to have a vast library from which to choose their reading material. So the books, as cumbersome as they are, are staying (at least for now). But there is definitely stuff that needs to go, and needs to go now.

Confession: I still have office supplies and craft supplies from college. I graduated in 2006. So for six years, I have been holding on to mismatched envelopes, post-its, craft paint, and sequins, waiting for the chance to use them. And sometimes they do get used - about once a year. And yes, I don't want to be wasteful and just throw it all away. And buying new paint every time you do a project can be expensive. But, if you're only doing a project once or twice a year, and you have a box larger than your tv set full of miscellaneous paint colors... it might be time to do some prioritizing. These are the kinds of things that I hope to start eliminating from my house in the coming weeks - especially as new baby stuff keeps piling in. Because for me, this isn't simply a house cleaning or pre-baby nesting. It's a way to prepare my heart for all the uncertainties of the future; to let go of my need for things and focus on my need for God. It's already a lot more difficult than I thought, but I am excited to see what happens. Wish me luck!


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