De-Cluttering: Out of Sight, Out of Mind

I am a neat person. I do not mean “cool,” I mean tidy. I do not like to have things out of place in my home. I keep things visually orderly. On the other hand, I sometimes shove stuff in drawers and closets so I don’t have to look at them. “Out of sight, out of mind,” however, only has band aid effects for a desired minimalist existence.

When I moved to Colorado 11 years ago, I downsized my possessions as I thought I would move to a smaller space. As happened, I bought a condo with 50% more square footage than my home in North Caroliina. I had many closets for storage. I am not much of a shopper but over time, I have accumulated “stuff.” I want to get rid of belongings that I no longer use, or that will mean nothing to anyone coming after me.

I am thinking about what becomes of my things once my physical body transforms from this earth. I want to begin planning for that eventuality sooner rather than later. Therefore, I have been reading about de-cluttering. It is one thing to read about it and another to institute a plan.

The first step is to convince myself that I need to de-clutter sooner rather than later and then have a plan. I am gathering tips that will motivate me. Perhaps this is the year that implementation will begin.

Decluttering is a physical task focused on organizing and tidying up spaces. The literature suggests decluttering can have profound psychological and lifestyle impact that will contribute to overall well-being. I am always in search of additional well-being.

Clutter is a source of stress and anxiety and that is why I choose to “hide” the clutter in drawers and closets. Disorganized space is not relaxing to me. These days I cannot forget about the clutter that lies behind those doors and drawers.

A big challenge in de-cluttering is letting go of the past. I have scrapbooks from high school that I have not looked at for decades. Will I ever? Certainly, no one else I know cares. Letting go will require making choices confidently and quickly. I suspect that letting go of some of my past will free me to appreciate my present.

I used to tell my students that poor writing indicated poor thinking. Similarly, for me anyway, unorganized spaces lead me to an unorganized life. With less clutter, I might be less distracted and will concentrate better especially when working on these blogs.

Now I just need to quit writing about it and get started!