By Glenda Wise
As I told you back in November, I have decided to give up buying unnecessary things like clothes, housewares, etcetera. I am happy to say that I haven’t bought anything like that, but I am sad to say my decluttering has not gone so well. I had yet another meltdown one morning because I couldn’t find a pair of pants in my embarrassingly messy closet. It’s bad…it’s real bad. Anyway, I was at the doctor’s office the other day and what else is there to do while you wait, but get on Pinterest. I was actually looking for inspiration for this column and I came across the most delightful, genuine blog about decluttering and simplifying that it truly grabbed me and sucked me in. The name of the blog is Simple, on Purpose.
She said so many things that resonated with me, I couldn’t believe it. For example, she starts asking why she allowed all this stuff into her home and life. Isn’t that the truth? I have sat around wondering the same thing. So much of this “stuff” can run our lives without us even realizing it. How much more time would I have if I didn’t have to clean and straighten all of these things?
Even though we’re all sitting here saying, “Yes, I need to declutter!” We often don’t because 1) it’s overwhelming to even know how or where to start and 2) time is limited. I researched further to find more ideas on how to get started decluttering and I came across another blog called Filling the Jars. She offers a slow decluttering process and even a free download to get you started. She suggests choosing the room that means the most to you. For me, that is probably the kitchen because it is very frustrating trying to put clean dishes away in already full cabinets.
I have told you all before that I’m a small victories kind of person. I need to feel like I’ve accomplished something to help me get to the major accomplishment. She suggests a “10 items a day” decluttering method. That is more my speed. I need to do several little things that don’t take up an entire day. The little things add up, because doing that for a month will eliminate 300 items and in six months you will have eliminated nearly 2,000 items from your home! Now, that’s what I’m talking about!
Let’s grab those trash bags and donation boxes and get to simplifying and decluttering our homes!