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Similar words have been used by many people to make a fortune off us clutter keepers. How are you when it comes to filling your home with stuff?  Do you get caught up in the need to get the next best thing? Do you have to stop at every gift shop as you leave a museum, exhibition, or theme park? Does the advertising in furniture stores, buy now pay later, convince you? Online shopping certainly doesn’t help, such a quick flick of the thumb to put it in the shopping cart. We get a barrage of advertising thrown at us everyday, often pulling us in without realizing it.

I got hit with a new one this week. I stopped in at the local shoe repair shop to inquire about fixing my sandals. I got so distracted by the purse display, I forgot all about my shoes. The shop lady was very nice, chatty, and so excited to have a customer visit. ‘It’s been so hard’, she said. ‘I’ve missed my customers while we were forced to close. All these purses I bought for spring sales are just sitting here while my bills pile up’. I can’t fault her. I understand she needs to make up for lost sales. Even though I have more purses than I care to admit, I still managed to get persuaded by her sad tale to make a purchase. On the way home, I caught myself justifying that it was time for a new work purse anyway, ignoring the fact that I’m still working from home.

I make a joke about it, but to be honest I am disappointed. Having spent the last few years slowly dismantling my parents’ home and moving myself from a four-bedroom home to an apartment has been a real eye opener for me. It made me so aware of the quantity of my stuff versus what my needs really are. I have been making a concerted effort to consume less, and yet it was so easy to slip back into the need for the shiny new thing.

I haven’t paid much attention to these professional de-clutter people. I figure buying their book about having less would only add to my bookshelf instead of help reduce clutter. I also feel I should be able to manage purging my things in my own way. Still curious, I have been following a minimalist Facebook page for a while now. There seems to be a wide range of ideas on what it really means to be minimalist and I certainly have not figured it out. It is rather interesting to see how they are changing their homes. It’s especially fun when they post a picture of their perfect room and ask for opinions. But as I am reading stories of people who change their wardrobes, furniture, artwork, I wonder how much of a difference to our planet they are making. Are they consuming less or are they just replacing the old and buying new perfect items to fit this new style? Many do talk about donating to goodwill stores, or friends and family, but is that consuming less, or is it just shifting the stuff out of sight?

I was one of those family members who got the stuff. I guess I am a sucker for a good story or fond memory. Maybe it stems from being adopted and always craving history or family heirlooms. Whatever the reason, over the years many things have found their way to me. My basement was filled with boxes from my first marriage, a whole new set of everything for the second marriage, and several pieces of furniture – family heirlooms – from my father’s childhood home. How could I resist that? 

Liberating myself from this house full of stuff was a bonus, I suppose, of my divorce. I walked away from the house not knowing if I would see any of it again. I admit I felt some sadness at first thinking all these things were so important, filled with memories of my family. But I learned quite quickly that the memories followed me, as they are stored in my heart.

Starting over and determined not to consume more, I decided to use what I have until it is broken beyond repair or needs to be cut up for rags. I never got the house back, and the stuff I did eventually get back was just enough to set up my new home and equip my daughter in her first apartment. Sometimes I am teased when my friends see my kitchen. The hutch displaying the fancy good china is gone. My everyday dishes, which I even put in the dishwasher, were my grandmother’s and are over 100 years old. The silver cutlery, stored away for 25 years, is now battered and tarnished from use. The fancy crystal sits precariously on the deck while we BBQ. Consuming less and working towards living a clutter free life with just one of everything simplifies so much and saves money. It also gives me more time to focus on the things that matter, like collecting memories with the people I love.

If one day all I have from my set of dishes is the sugar bowl missing a lid, that’s ok, because it means I had a lifetime of celebrations, not perfection displayed in a hutch. 

Let go of that need to have more stuff. Stop buying into the ads for the picture-perfect room. Set the table with your fancy dishes and light those candles you’ve been saving for a special today. Because today is that day.

Love,