I had to take a little break after my last post for a brief vulnerability hangover. Sharing things that aren't great isn't easy. And at the same time it felt remarkably free-ing to be honest & true, and I'm going to try it more often. Stay tuned for more snapshots of my awesome life which isn't always rainbows & unicorns!
Really though, I got some of the nicest feedback in the form of comments here (which usually only come from my Mom!), and one directly that said "You are best when you're at your most truthful". Big gratitude for all of that - just the motivation I need to share more things that come from a deeper place. Keep your eyes peeled.
In the meantime, a quick update on the Epic Space Clearing of 2015!
** I do want to note that clearing out a house that I'd owned with my ex-husband for 15 years meant that a LOT of things ended up coming to my place that I knew I'd have to go through again at some point. That point is now. **
I am astonished (daily) at the random shit I have kept over the years. Some examples:
- My High School Yearbooks. Why was I keeping four heavy tomes of memories from a time that I wouldn't go back to if you paid me a lot of money? Good question. I kept the one from Senior year (for now), and the rest went to Goodwill. (I think I've just contributed to the weirdness that is Classmates.com.)
- Purses. So Many purses & I'm not even a Purse Person. Maybe I was trying to be? I found a wedding invitation from 15 years ago in an old Coach Purse, for a friend who recently got divorced. Recycle. Goodwill. Next!
- Pictures in Picture Frames. I don't have a lot of room for knick-knacks and extra things on shelves. Photos have been taken out of frames, and frames taken to Goodwill.
- Christmas lights, Christmas wrapping, Christmas decorations. Really? It's kind of outta control. Keeping 1/2 of it, letting the rest go.
I'm also a little surprised at the things which I am struggling to let go of. Like:
- Reference Books. Dictionary. Thesaurus. Synonyms. Why can't I let these go when I know everything in them can be found on the internet and my kids will likely never use them? There's just something about a good refence book with that thin, dictionary paper in it . . .
- CD's. What exactly am I supposed to do with my CD's, most of which are from the early 90's? Tonight I imported them all into my iTunes library on my old Mac desktop, and will take the rest to Goodwill. (But wait - I could listen to them in the CAR! No, No, No . . .)
- Photos. Maybe this shouldn't be a surprise - but I find myself keeping a lot of old photos, even ones that are really BAD. I can see there will be a "second wave" of clearing out that will reduce the crappy pictures of my past to a much, much smaller pile. Baby steps . . .
And then there are the treasures . . . like this photo from my first photography class in the fourth grade. I will keep this forever! Clearly lots of thought went into this faux car-crash scene - it's hilarious! My outfit on the other hand could have used a little more thought . . . ????
I'm about 1/3 of the way through this craziness which if you recall was originally movtivated by Kate Northrup's Feng Shui For Financial Freedom and I wanted to tell you that it's working. How so? Well, a year ago (against the advice of my accountant), I filed an appeal with the IRS requesting that I be relieved of a rather sizable debt that they were trying collect from me relating to an old unpaid joint-return - most of which was owed from my ex's business. (I didn't know it hadn't been paid.) Last week I received notice that my appeal had been approved!! Is it money in my pocket? No. But that just moved me almost $4000 in the right direction. I'LL TAKE IT!
I have the weirdest theory about this process which feels woo-y even to me - (not just woo-woo, but Triple Woo!) - hear me out: I have an overwhelming feeling that everything in my house is made up of teeny bits of energy. From all the material possesions, to the trash/recycling, to the dust bunnies on my stairs & under my bed. Which is to say that even when I'm done with this massive project there will be daily efforts to keep my space at it's best - making room for the good bits of energy by clearing out the ones which aren't serving me. (The city dust around here is kind of ridiculous.) And I also think this extends to other parts of my life like relationships and behaviour patterns. I believe with every fiber of my being that by letting go of what's not serving me, I am making room for new and exciting adventures and opportunities!
One more quick thing. A freind of mine recently posted this on Facebook:
And sooooo - tonight I start Swing Dancing classes - I can't WAIT!
Happy Thursday . . .
xo
You are not the only one who thinks extra stuff (be it in your house or on your body) is psychic weight that holds you down or back. And Swing dance soooo much fun.
Posted by: Plaid Sneakers | January 08, 2015 at 03:48 PM