Yesterday we finally said goodbye to all the delayed decisions, and in the process discovered some very important things.
But let me go back a step.
We moved into our current home five and a half years ago. We moved from a tiny house with no garage to a home with four bedrooms, two livings areas and a study. Not to mention a massive garage, storage room, and underhouse storage area. Over the years many furniture items and other things have been replaced. Our new home had a very different living area with many windows and doors, so our furniture just didn't work. We added another family member. Kids started school. Craig has worked endless shift work. I had a operation and another pregnancy. It was insanely busy.
We tried hard to keep on top of everything, especially in the rooms we live in every day (which are mostly organised). BUT as time went on we begun to notice something: the storage areas were becoming more useful. Instead of deciding what to do with some items we put them downstairs to deal with later. Perhaps we might find another use for them? What if we need the item later? We didn't need to deal with the item immediately because we had plenty of space. After all storage should be used, right?
I have been reading about simplifying for a couple of years now. We have streamlined much around our home and in our lifestyle. We have a school notes 'spot', a great mudroom which has certainly taken the stress out of having 4 at school, the kitchen isn't all packed in (there is cupboard space), hand soap is the only item on the vanity in our bathroom, the children are down to one extracurricular activity each, and the laundry is fantastic.
Lately, with many other stresses invading my life, I began to feel overwhelmed with our home again. It took a little while to determine the cause. It was the storage. And toys.
My wonderful sister is the very best at getting rid of 'stuff'. She can look past all the what-ifs and make wise decisions on what is really needed. And she is very tough. She agreed to help me! My brother in law came along to help Craig with the muscle work.
The big decision was what to do with everything. We could have put it all up for sale. It would have been the wisest decision, especially considering I don't have any work past April and I am having a sixth baby.
But I just couldn't.
You see we have been amazingly blessed as a family. Every time we have had disaster strike, incredible things have happened. I couldn't ignore that.
I wanted all the things we no longer had need for, to go to families that really did need these items. So instead we listed a 'free to all' advertisement on Facebook and waited.
We saw many grateful faces, on parents and children alike. The amount of items that were collected in one day was astounding. At least three quarters of the toys we had in storage were given away. One child of mine came downstairs to check on what was happening, and was worried. That is until I asked her to tell me what was missing. She couldn't name one item.
That confirmed it for me: these items that meant little more than a bit of security to us, meant so much more for others.
However, the best part came later.
This morning I woke up feeling lighter. Happier. And feeling free!
It can not be underestimated how much the 'stuff' in our lives can weigh us down and stress us out. It might seem strange, but letting go actually adds to life. Space, and less maintenance of 'things' means life can be filled with what is so much more important. Taking ourselves back to what we need, and what "sparks joy" (read Marie Kondo!!) can give us the gift of time and freedom.
It's not until I experienced this is a really big way was I able to completely comprehend it.
I urge you to take a moment to consider: what are you holding onto that would mean more to someone else, and freedom for yourself, by letting it go?
I'm going to leave you with a quote (that a lovely friend posted for me!) It really steeled my resolve to part with all that didn't add to our life as a family. I will continue to re-read it, because we are still not done. But after my experience, instead of feeling daunted, I can't wait to continue our journey!
"Your home should be the antidote to stress. Not the cause." - Peter Walsh.
Have you ever decided to part with a whole heap of items all at once? How did you feel afterwards? Do you need to have a big clear out or part with some items that are not adding to your life? How do you plan to do it? Share your simplifying stories! We all do things differently and your story may just help another person out there....
Jen.x
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