Next, on this very special episode of hoarders...
We have a lot of stuff. And by stuff I mean crap. And by crap I mean twenty-six years of accumulation in one house. This house has seen the raising of two kids who have also left their crap, plus our own stuff that has really never been adequately gone through to to reduce the mess.
We are now going through every item in our personal possession and determine what we are to do with it. This is painful drudgery, but is also affirming and in some ways an exhilarating process.
My first reaction was, where did I get all of this crap?
My second reaction was, what do I do with all of this crap?
Thankfully, I have gotten over the former, and am at least dealing with the latter. I think I know how it accumulated, and it is not pretty. So as is my habit, I decided to think about it in a somewhat esoteric way, and I have derived a formula for it. Here it is:
cr = (c + r) t
Where cr is my crap, c represents my innate curiosity for so many things, r stands for resources with which to purchase or acquire said crap, and t is of course time to do it all. I am no mathematician. I have two other variables, but I am not sure how to factor them in to my equation. The additional factors prevent me from periodically and systematically reviewing said crap to see if it should be removed, sold, given away or thrown away. Those factor are my laziness and my sentimentality.
The big question for me (and you if take on this challenge) is to ask a very difficult question as we look at our stuff. Does this thing make me happy that I own it? I have decided to be ruthless with myself. I am middle aged. I think I know which things I value by now. In the rare case that I am not sure, I have made a vow to myself to be ruthless in removing said items from my possession anyway.
No one can make you review your life and its contents. The question is, what do you want in your life? Is it more stuff? Better stuff? Different stuff? What about ideas, relationships, and people? It all comes down to what you want out of your life and then devising a plan to get there.
The problem for me is that life happened and distracted me from even asking these questions. Those questions are now being asked and hopefully answered so that we can move to the next great thing in our lives.
One thing I am committed to: From now on, I will own my crap. My crap will not own me.
