We recently shifted to a new house, which is what inspired this post. I realized how much stuff my parents have collected over the years. It won't be fair to say "parents" since it basically my mom who hoards everything. My dad could possibly live his entire life with a pair of jeans a few shirts and a toothbrush. He disposes off anything he does not use---including cards and drawings that my sis and I had "presented" to him. I agree that we are not Deli or Piccaso but it upset us initially. Now that I'm older and wiser, I appreciate his habit a lot more. There is no mess around him.
My mom, on the other hand, always has good reasons why she should not get rid of things. The reason is "sentimental value." To be fair to her, every few months she gathers all discarded clothes that are in good condition, has them washed and ironed before donating them them to NGOs that may need them. She does that without a second thought. However, trying to get her to throw away a button that broke away from my dress when I was 5 yrs old (she meant to stitch it back) is impossible. And we have many such curiosities hidden in various drawers and cupboard shelf. These are things only she remembers where and how they were used decades ago.
After going through the tedious process of shifting all the "good stuff" and the zillion pieces of crap. Oops! I mean, "memorabilia," I decided to clear my clutter immediately. I destroyed all old personal diaries, which wasn't a difficult task since most pages were filled with accounts of how much homework I had and what I had for dinner. Yeah, so I had very poor idea of what memories I wanted to pen down. I got rid of old clothes, donated my cosmetics that I bought out of greed but never really used and everything else that I had not used (or even seen until then) for the past 2 years. I had already curbed my nasty habit of shopping for things I didn't need a few months ago so this clearing was really just the next step.
I am now certain that my own house would be minimalistic...de-cluttered and easy on the eyes. As for sentimental values, I'll save that for people and not material stuff.
My mom, on the other hand, always has good reasons why she should not get rid of things. The reason is "sentimental value." To be fair to her, every few months she gathers all discarded clothes that are in good condition, has them washed and ironed before donating them them to NGOs that may need them. She does that without a second thought. However, trying to get her to throw away a button that broke away from my dress when I was 5 yrs old (she meant to stitch it back) is impossible. And we have many such curiosities hidden in various drawers and cupboard shelf. These are things only she remembers where and how they were used decades ago.
After going through the tedious process of shifting all the "good stuff" and the zillion pieces of crap. Oops! I mean, "memorabilia," I decided to clear my clutter immediately. I destroyed all old personal diaries, which wasn't a difficult task since most pages were filled with accounts of how much homework I had and what I had for dinner. Yeah, so I had very poor idea of what memories I wanted to pen down. I got rid of old clothes, donated my cosmetics that I bought out of greed but never really used and everything else that I had not used (or even seen until then) for the past 2 years. I had already curbed my nasty habit of shopping for things I didn't need a few months ago so this clearing was really just the next step.
I am now certain that my own house would be minimalistic...de-cluttered and easy on the eyes. As for sentimental values, I'll save that for people and not material stuff.
