Stuff

We have spent the last few weeks getting rid of stuff. We have collected an amazing amount of stuff over the years and it is time for most of it to go.

I began in my closet. When you can't possibly squeeze one more piece of clothing into the closet it is time for something to go. That part was pretty easy. Anything I no longer wear or never really much liked got cleaned out. Clothes were either given away or thrown away.

Next I began cleaning out cupboards and closets full of old toys, crafts, and art supplies. I threw away 14 jars of dried out Play Doh, a big box of broken crayons, dozens of games and puzzles, and broken toys my now grown grandchildren played with when they were little. It was hard to get rid of some these things. They triggered many sweet memories. I kept the memories, but threw away the battered toys. One closet shelf held 43 vases. They all came filled with beautiful flowers, but 43 vases really are more than I need. My husband boxed them up and took them to the local florist who was delighted to take them. The florist even gave him a big bouquet of flowers to bring home and put in one of the six vases I kept.

Inspired by all my cleaning, my husband decided it was time to clean out the attic. That has been a very interesting bit of cleaning. We have lived in this house almost 50 years. The attic held remnants from all those years. Mixed in with the old college books were letters we had written to one another before we were married. In one of them I told of my great excitement after an interview for my first job as a registered nurse. I had been offered $395 a month! I didn't know what we would do with all that money. There were parts of science fairs and school projects going back to my husband's high school days. There was a lot of old camping equipment. We used to love to camp, but now we find hotels are far more comfortable. So much stuff!

It feels good to clean out the dusty left-overs and make way for whatever the the future may bring.