Spring cleaning and decluttering nurture our well-being. 😊

When we think of spring cleaning, we think of the annual ritual of cleaning our homes down to the baseboards and up to the ceiling fixtures. One benefit of this deep cleaning is the better quality of air we breathe in, as any hidden dirt (behind the fridge and stove?) and age-old dust bunnies have been removed. With a freshened-up abode, we can relax knowing we’re ready to welcome family or friends to visit, even on the spur of the moment. Of course, most family members and good friends would never judge us if our home were not pristine. It’s more about how we feel having a presentable home – we’re comfortable and at peace in our surroundings. That’s a nice feeling.

We also tend to clear out excess items and unwanted clutter while spring cleaning, which frees up space in our living environment and reduces the mental burden we may have because of living with too much stuff. Perhaps an overabundance of possessions is something that may not be given a second thought by some, but, for me, it really is constantly on my mind.

I admit it is sometimes difficult for me to think of getting rid of possessions that once played a significant role in my life, such as good quality sports equipment – even for sports I no longer play! I know I’m not alone in this, because there are countless books on the topic of “downsizing” or “rightsizing,” as well as numerous businesses and professionals offering services to help clients downsize and organize their homes. Professional Organizer Marie Kondo became an international sensation with her KonMari Method, which she explained in her 2014 bestselling book entitled “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.”

I must really have a lot of stuff because I have moved five times in the last 25 years and each time disposed of (by throwing away, giving away, or selling) multiple items. There were some boxes that had not even been opened through several of those moves. Do I really need that stuff? No. But we sometimes hold onto items for sentimental reasons or for the fear of needing something the moment after we have released our ownership of it.

The last time I moved was to merge households with my new husband. While we both have too much stuff now, I know we did a lot of giving away and selling of large items and duplicates of items so we could fit our most useful and wanted items in the home we now share. I do cut myself a bit of slack, knowing I still have the desire to do more to simplify our living space. We can’t beat ourselves up, even if we still have a ways to go to achieve a goal. As long as we are continuing to move forward, we are moving forward.

One of my girlfriends is a successful professional who owns a beautiful home. She has the financial resources to own a lot of things, but she doesn’t. Her home is an incredible example of living well with a minimal quantity of possessions. I recently asked her how she does it. She simply remarked that she does not place importance on things. Because she doesn’t have any emotional attachment to things, it really means nothing to her to not possess items she doesn’t need to live her daily, very full, life. Wow. A simple outlook, but very powerful.

I have touched on just three reasons why we may keep unneeded items in our homes that lead to clutter and just too much stuff:

1. Reluctance to release expensive, quality items that once were needed in our lives;
2. Difficulty parting with items that hold sentimental value; and
3. Fear of getting rid of something we think we may suddenly have a need for immediately after its disposal.

There are many strategies for how people can successfully address each of these roadblocks to clearing our residences of excess possessions that do not currently serve our living needs. For in-depth guidance on how to tackle the challenge of clutter and disorganization, many books have been published, and courses have been designed to help people in this area of their lives. There is no need to spend money to obtain this information if you don’t want to, as books can be borrowed from the public library and there are many free resources and mini courses that you can find online.

When I’ve managed to get rid of many possessions in the past, it was because I knew I no longer needed the item or wasn’t interested in keeping it. It was time to send the item on its way. If it were in good condition and of monetary value, I either sold it via free online marketplaces or happily gave it away knowing someone else could benefit from having it.

If we find out that we really need an item that we just got rid of, we could always purchase it again. How many times have we experienced this in our lives? Maybe once or twice, probably never. That’s pretty good odds of success in the removal of items from our homes for the benefit of a cleared out physical and mind space.

For those truly sentimental items, we could choose to keep the item if it doesn’t take up too much space in our home or is rare or is one-of-a-kind. In other instances, we can choose to understand that it isn’t the item that has meaning, but the personal memory we have about how we used the item, or how a loved one used the item. It’s really our personal memories that are sentimental and hold the real value to us, not the item. This acknowledgement can help us move on from holding onto excessive amounts of items we feel sentimental about.

By cleansing our homes, through deep cleaning and decluttering, we give ourselves more physical and mental space to grow and thrive. We are also taking real steps to move on from the past and live in the present moment. It is the present where we live our lives and make memories to treasure in the future. And we know that our precious memories never feature stuff! 😉