Last time we talked about decluttering and I pointed you to a website I’ve been using since the beginning of the year: http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/declutter.html. What I’ve loved about this site is the fact that it includes both organization as well as shifts the focus from simply organizing to mentally deciding if you really need what’s in front of you.

Why is this mental shift important? Though I love to organize, I don’t always throw things away. I tend to find a better way to keep what I already have: a better way to organize my stuff. With decluttering for 15 minutes a day, not only am I figuring out the best place to put things, I’m also deciding if I really need these things in my life. It’s great to be organized, but if I don’t need all this stuff, does that make me a hoarder?

Have you ever watched the TV show “Hoarders”? I love that show because I like to see how they will solve the problem of the actual stuff. Plus, when I wanted the kids to clean their rooms when they were little, I had them watch this show. I might have told them that if they didn’t clean their rooms when I asked, it would eventually turn into one of these houses. Yeah, I really did that and, yes, it really worked for a bit until they realized we were no where close to that.

Here’s the thing, though, the show is so much more about the stuff: it’s mental. Hoarding is an actual mental issue and I found the longer I watched the show, and I still do from time-to-time, that I had some of those same “mental” tendencies. Tendencies to hold on to objects I no longer need due to emotional connection; whether good or bad. Some words used to describe hoarding are: stash, stockpile, store, and stow. If I store something away, i.e., organize it, is it really considered hoarding? While we could dive into asking more questions about hoarding, let’s look at what is the opposite of hoarding: discard, dump, throw away, unload, hand out, disperse.

Unload.

Wow! That sounds so freeing to me. I need to unload from all the “weight” I feel at times from having too much stuff. Proverbs 3:27 (NIV) reads, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.”  These past few months I’ve been going room by room going through what I no longer use or need. I’ve given many “good” things in my house away to those who need it more than I do. It has been exciting and as I let go of those things I’m realizing I feel lighter. My not hoarding (storing and stowing), is allowing me to discard, unload, and disperse to others in need.

Here’s your task for this week: Pick one room in your house that makes you feel weighed down when you simply look at it or think about that area. Take 10-15 minutes to declutter, discard, and find at least one thing you can give away to someone else who is in need. You just might find out your load is lighter and your face might have a smile starting to form.

Time to simplify…go!

Did you read Time to Simplify: Part 1?

© 2017 Susan M. Sims

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