let’s talk about clutter | part two
(continuing from Monday’s post on handling clutter once and for all…)
ask this question: does this GIVE me energy or TAKE it away? hold every single thing and pay attention to how it makes you feel. remember, our stuff piles up over time so you are processing years of decisions and emotions as you handle it. but. with patience and persistence, you’ll only need to go through this process once. and if this exhausts you to even think about, that’s a gorgeous clue you have HUGE potential to bulldoze your way to higher ground.
say “bye-bye” to broken things, “what if” or “just in case” storage, and stuff with questionable content. shui is a metaphorical practice, and nobody wants to feel broke. even though we intend to fix stuff, it usually doesn’t happen. feel the grief, if necessary, and then celebrate the relief that comes from letting it go. things we keep out of guilt or obligation just makes the energy in our house wonky. holding onto possessions because we are “suppose to” might seem like a polite gesture, but the intention is sideways. your space is sacred – if you don’t LOVE it, release yourself from its strangle.
also, content is everything, so give careful consideration to what your books, artwork, and projects are saying. energy gets stale when our surroundings are out of sync with our goals and desires. everything around us is either rigging life in your favor or putting the fire in your heart out – choose wisely.
de-clutter first; organize later. organization is not de-cluttering. not even close. it’s actually a short-cut that mimics an accomplishment. but organized clutter is still clutter. worse, it’s a superficial fix because we quickly find ourselves back on the treadmill going nowhere, but even more exhausted from our efforts. so, de-clutter first; organize another day.
give everything its own home. it is the indecision of where things go that ultimately overwhelms us. claim space for your things and put them back in their spaces, making this a daily ritual. when we give things a sense of belonging, we create the same experience for ourselves. xo
/ photo by Lizzy of @lizzyhigham_interiorstyling)
