Article about letting go of stuff

[Olive6001]

I enjoyed this article. It made me think of forum threads about letting go of possessions during the move to fulltiming or downsizing.

https://aeon.co/essays/why-i-love-my-po ... lery-of-me

[grammynmaggie]

That made me sad...

[Wanderer2]

Oh and there I am! Closed on my house on Wednesday and am renting it for a couple of months while I find THE RV and starting to let some things go. I actually had to say goodbye to my favorite vase-literally! Now that is too attached. I find that I have to be in the right mood to just let go. I say "Linda- you don't have a house anymore"-then "I am so happy to be leaving this area, tons of work, fixing up, tilling, weeding,cleaning gutters, changing oil in equipment etc, etc" and I say "SOLD"! That works-but it is still hard. I am keeping some favorite little things and storing some stuff for a little while as down the road, I will find that I either don't need them or want them anymore or it will be easier because it's not so much. Mind games I tell you. I say whatever works because it has to go. I think I am doing pretty well. Still have to have the big yard sale. Enjoyed the article and I know that I am not alone.

[BarbaraRose]

That really makes a lot of sense! I can see how our things identify who we are. You can tell a lot about a person by looking at their things. Our possessions are an extension of who we are, our interests, passions, places we've been, places we want to go, who we want to become, etc. I guess that is why it is so hard to let things go sometimes. That is part of what is referred to as sentimental value.
Very thought-provoking!

[JudyJB]

I agree that it is a sad article. The one thing that is saddest is the saying that we are our things. I hope that is not true, even though I have a very few things that are important to me because of what they represent--like the gold charm bracelet and the heart-shaped pin that were the first really adult things my parents gave me for my 13th birthday. I have added to the bracelet on trips I have taken over my lifetime and some of my charms signify big events, like my 16th birthday, my trip to Greece, my trip to England, my mother's original engagement diamond, etc. Also, the one thing I have with me in my motorhome is the music box my father gave my mother for a special occasion when I was very young.

But I will have to say I really miss very little of the stuff I had in my condo. As I have gotten older, fewer things really mean as much to me as they used to. Even though I tossed or gave away at least 50% of what I owned, I put a lot of stuff in a storage place, and now this summer I need to go in and toss 80% of what is left. I am keeping my parents chandelier, old photos, and stuff like that. The rest will get tossed!!

[asirimarco]

The thing that bothered me the most in downsizing was getting rid of my wall of hard back books.

[BirdbyBird]

Nikki, thank you for sharing this post. It speaks a lot of truths. I have made it through many of the give aways and uncluttering because other than my animals that have come and gone in my life, most of my life I did not "collect" many things of value. Now I admit that my traveling in the rig has added "stuff" like a sweet cast iron dragon from Tombstone, Arizona that still talks to me and a basket of rocks from the beach in Washington that Stuart helped me find on his walk. And then there are the photographs and pictures on the walls......

[Birdie]

Ann, I too, was saddened by the books I let go. I did keep some first additions, favorite authors, and favorite books. Then some of the furniture and clothes that I would never wear again. But they were all significant items. Still have my valued jewelry. Probably could dump a bunch more from storage, but then I think...won't being doing this too much longer. Oh, well it is all just stuff and I am getting a little bit more. Will be dumping t-shirts this fall as I have replaced some of them!!

Just stuff! Keep saying it, just stuff!

[Andi]

I don't so much hold onto the big things as the small...dad's old camera, mom's wedding rings. My biggest hard-to-let-go-of items, though, are written things, and while that does include books, it's mainly a volume of correspondence over the years. Everything from recipes from mom that she wrote into her letters, Christmas cards, even a farewell card from my first job from 40+ years ago and a letter from my sister's boyfriend when he was in Vietnam. And strangely enough, this volume of correspondence isn't all in one place but there are some in all of the boxes that I cart with me whenever I move. Whenever I need to go through a box for something, I'll find these treasures tucked away, waiting for me to find them again. A lot of echoes of home and friends over the years...

[chalet05]

Interesting article, Nikki. Late hubby and I both liked our 'things'. When all was said and done, I ended up giving a lot of it away - could have saved our money. My big thing was decorating our home so there were wall hangings, antiques, collectibles. After nearly 9 years, my daughter and I went through my small storage unit in May. I let go of more, but some things it just wasn't time yet and who knows if I'll ever have those things in a home again. One particular item is an antique mixing bowl purchased in Pennsylvania in 2001 - not only because I like it, but because it is a reminder of a great time with Steven as we shopped.

After all this time, there are still a few things I miss. If I could give young people one piece of advice, it would be not to clutter their lives.