There’s nothing like a good clean-up to bring to light all those things you haven’t clapped eyes on in years, have managed to live without and then when they suddenly come to light you know you will never part with them. It’s the bane of every clean-up I’m sure and I’m as susceptible as the next guy when it comes to not throwing stuff out during a clear-out of stuff that needs to be thrown out.
I used to be able to blame it on the kids because they wanted to keep everything right down to the last broken toy but then they grew up and developed a ruthless gene which I’m sure they didn’t inherit from me. They can actually throw out stuff. Whole boxes of it to be honest and while I’m no hoarder, I do find I need to look at things just a little more closely before I consign them to the bin.This may, or may not be, a good thing.
Okay, if it is broken or missing something vital then yes, it’s tossed but I inevitably come across stuff that I have to think twice about even though I have not seen or used it in years. The thing is, I may want to use it now, seeing as I have just found it again!
What’s brought all this on is the fact that I just spent the weekend cleaning out two big cupboards with Twin I and inevitably, out came all sorts of things that have not seen the light of day in ages. Some of it I was really pleased to find again and I have definitely found a more visible and accessible place for them but to be really honest, we came across some stuff that had both of us wondering why we had hung on to it for soooooo long! Things that we had never really used all that much and would never use again, things that just should have been dumped a long time ago and things that had definitely seen much better days. It was actually enlightening and amazingly revitalising.
The thing is that most of us tend to accumulate things as the years go by and it’s not until you decide to tackle that cupboard or drawer or those boxes that you realise just what you’ve hung onto and it’s not unusual to find yourself asking “Now why did I ever keep that?”
It’s human nature to get all soft-hearted about some stuff because it belonged to your great-grandparent and then it’s been passed down and so on and, well, you’re not about to chuck it out, even if you don’t use it because something that’s been in the family that long deserves to stay there a bit longer. At least until it falls apart anyway but what about that bowl you really don’t like that Aunty Someone gave you? Is she really going to know if it ends up at the op shop? Not likely, but if she ever asks you can always come up with a reasonable excuse as to why it’s not on prominent display. Have one ready just in case she drops in unannounced one day. And do you really need all those shoeboxes? No. You don’t.
Nor do you need around 5000 elastic bands, various short lengths of string, foil offcuts and a lot of those other little bits and pieces. I mean, how come they got saved in the first place? What’s with the half dozen odd pieces of Leggo? And then there’s the stuff that you’re just no longer even sure what they are! I guess you did know once upon a time and maybe there’s a vague stirring of memory but when it’s all said and done…what are they? Bottom line here: If it is a mystery, it’s gone. Seriously, it’s pointless hanging on to something if you no longer know what it is, huh!
I must be getting better at it because I was tough. I mean, really tough, and more stuff went out the door than back on the shelves and I was really, really pleased with myself. And then I ran it up to the tip before I could give it all a second look and change my mind!
Next weekend? The chest of drawers in the spare room!