SEARCHING : Timaru Lighthouse http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/timaru_harbour.htm at Benvenue Cliffs
Dear Friends
I may be away for a while. I am on a mission; to declutter, and to regroup.
Yesterday, I realized, to my horror, that I had mislaid/lost some very important personal papers. The last time I clearly remember seeing them was before I left for Cairns in late September. Vigorous searching in the past 24 hours has failed to reveal their whereabouts. In the process of turning cupboards inside out and drawers upside down, I have been confronted by clutter anarchy on an unacceptable scale.
It is time for action! Concentrated action.
I find the work of clearing out and cleaning up very tiring ( which is why I procrastinate about it till it can be ignored no longer). So, at the end of each day, for however long my tidy-up takes , I am planning to recoup my energy by reading, (not blogging!). I want to finish Wolf Pear by blogger Dianne Gray, and find time to read Mary Mageau’s trilogy: The Trousseau, An Antique Brooch and The Rose and the Thistle.
And whilst I read, and/or relax, I hope to listen to some of Mary’s beautiful compositions. How about Sleepy Koala to start with? 🙂
A friend of mine says that if we lose something we should ask St Anthony of Padua for help. I very rarely lose things, so I have only ever sent up a quick ‘St Anthony, could you help me out?’ type prayer. ( He did, eventually. ; ) )
Here is part of a more proper version of a prayer to St Anthony:
Saint Anthony, perfect imitator of Jesus, who received from God the special power of restoring lost things, grant that I may find (mention your petition) which has been lost. As least restore to me peace and tranquility of mind, the loss of which has afflicted me even more than my material loss.
Does it work? Thousands upon thousands believe so. I am going to give it another try, for, more than anything, I am searching for the recovery of my peace of mind.
See you later!
ps. I will, of course, do a brief post later in the month with the results of my Thanksgiving giveaway. And I will answer all comments you may like to make on this post.
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- Where
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- oh where, are you,
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- peace of mind?
© silkannthreades
silkannthreades 
That is a nice lighthouse. Decluttering does take a lot of time and dedication – it can be so tiring and unexciting. I am glad you found the papers.
Me too, and I am glad you found my blog. I haven’t written anything about Zambia but I lived in Lusaka from 1983 to 1987. In my searching I found some old photos of our house. Lots of memories.
We need to do a serious decluttering too! I wish you well with your project! A friend of mine who describes herself as a “non-practising Catholic” swears by the efficacy of “Hail Mary, full of grace… help me find a parking space”. Says it works every time!
That’s a good one to remember at this time of year when parking spaces are so hard to find! One of your earlier posts (2013?) prompted me to de-clutter my linen cupboard. Unfortunately, said cupboard has experienced clutter creep and needs a good talking to. 🙂
Spring cleaning???? What season is it now? Summer cleaning? I wondered where you were. and now I see you’re back……….will go see what was cleaned and what was left. Interestingly I just did a post about the joy of clutter….oh dear! ): Actually, clutter makes me nervous and I’m just glad you’re baaaaacccckkkkk! ❤
Only back for a brief moment. 😦 Since we are approaching the solstice, maybe it should be called solstice cleaning. 😀
De-cluttering is a very good idea! Good luck, my dear. That would be neaded here as well…
Thank you. It’s exhausting work. If I had the money I think I would call in professionals!
Beautiful photos, Gallivanta! We are getting cold rain at the moment, possibly some snow later in the day. Catching up on some reading myself.
Brrr…..actually not so warm here today on this, the first day of summer. However we needed the rain. It was most welcome.
I scrolled through the previous comments, and saw that you found the papers. Thank goodness you found them. Have a wonderful and relaxing (maybe that’s not the right word since you are busy decluttering) Blogcation! I look forward to your return.
Sheryl, I am so pleased I found the papers. Such a relief. I am treating myself to a little relaxation tonight. Realistically I can only do about a couple of hours intensive sorting and de-cluttering each day, anyway. Occasionally I find something entertaining in the sort-out, but mostly it’s dull, dull, and plain hard slog. 😦
I have found that when negative events hit our Life…something good always comes of it. Hoping the same for you.
Thank you Laurie. I am hoping that the ‘good’ will be a house that is tidy and easy to keep clean. 🙂 My house does actually ‘look’ tidy but that is because all the mess is hidden in drawers and cupboard!
Eek! I hope the de-cluttering goes well. And when you’ve finished, please can you come and de-clutter my house? I can’t find ANYTHING. Sigh.
Twisted Yarn! By the time I have restored order in my house, I will be an expert de-clutterer, willing and able to give assistance world-wide. My fees will be expensive, of course. In your case, I would charge one knitted garment by room cleaned. One small problem. How long can you wait? 😉
Sounds like a good deal to me. 🙂 You haven’t seen the level of clutter here! (My camera angles are chosen VERY carefully.)
Right! It has taken me an hour and a half to sort through two drawers this afternoon, so ETA your place 2016!
Dear Gallivanta, yes, prayers are coming your way. As Christmas approaches it may be the right time to take a deep breath, declutter, and give yourself some well needed space. Thank you for your inclusion of my work. We will stay in touch.
Thank you Mary. I am enjoying learning more about Norfolk Island in An Antique Brooch. Interestingly, in the newspaper today, there is an article on a William Burnie, who from 1832 was a director of the Van Diemen’s Land Company, and one of his roles was to arrange the transportation of convicts, including 123 female convicts in 1838 to Hobart Town. The town of Burnie in Tasmania is named after him. These are places(and history) that will be familiar to you, I am sure.
Good news on the “lost papers”. I know the anxiety around misplacing such things. I have an area in the pantry where various papers reside in a sort of “pending” system for A4 documents. Bills go in a special drawer that does not contain other miscellaneous items!!!! Mostly these two “systems” work well for me but seem to bewilder other members of the household! There is havoc in many other repositories within the house I am afraid……
Isn’t it funny how everyone has a different idea about systems? I have tried many over the years but no one seems to ‘get’ them but me! Just like no one understands the logic of my cutlery drawer. 😦 And, speaking of pending, I was sorting out a drawer this afternoon and found all the WOFs and old registration renewals for a car we sold about 10 years ago! Why on earth was all that kept?????? All that old paper is now firmly in the OUT box.
Oh, good! You’ve found them, Ann 🙂 I lost the ‘stylus’ off my smartphone case the other day and I was frantically looking down cushions and under chairs. It was a present so I hated to have been careless. It turned up on our front drive! All’s well that ends well. 🙂
Thank you for the Pooh. I’ve missed your presence but these things just have to be done.
Hugs! 🙂
Isn’t Pooh fun? He quite cheered me up. Glad your stylus was found! I am still plodding along with my de-cluttering. Trying not to be an Eeyore about it. 😀
Good luck with finding the important papers – that can be agonizing, losing such important possessions. And I like that prayer.
Cynthia, the prayer, plus a lot of hard work, brought results. Phew!
Excellent!
🙂 Indeed.
Oh, I do sympathize. Even though I’ve been working on decluttering for three years and very nearly am at the point where I can direct you to anything in my apartment without double-checking, I still lose things. Earlier this year, I wanted to quote a passage from a book for someone. I couldn’t find the book. It’s out of print, and I’d paid a relatively pretty penny for it, so it couldn’t be easily replaced. I knew I hadn’t loaned it to anyone, and I nearly drove myself crazy. After six months of looking, I gave up. Then, only a couple of weeks later, I found it. It was on a bookshelf: the one I’d unloaded twice while hunting for it. All I could do was laugh.
I hope the process is going well, and that you’re not exhausting yourself. I didn’t know about St. Anthony, and did a little casual reading about his abilities regarding all things lost. I found this paragraph, which gave me a smile: “In North America…[a popular version of the prayer] invokes: “Tony, Tony, look around. Something’s lost and can’t be found.” Although the prayer may sound disrespectful, nevertheless it reflects the petitioners’ casual and friendly affection towards the saint.” Next time I lose something, I may give Tony a shout-out. 😉
Oh my goodness…3 years of de-cluttering. I am feeling worried now that I may be away for a long time! However on the bright side… the papers have been found. Hooray. I am not sure what one is supposed to say to Saint Anthony, but here is my ungainly prayer: “Tony, Tony, thanks abound, what was lost, is now found.” I was rather tickled by how the search progressed. First I found other things I had lost; my magnifying glass and a nazar (to ward off the evil eye); then I found other things that I didn’t know I had lost…my certified copies of my enduring power of attorney and my marriage certificate. Then I came upon a newspaper article in an old envelope marked with my name. It had been sent to me by my mother and she had written on it “To put with other scraps -somewhere. Keep this for me.” And she had also written on it ” Happy sorting some day.” The article is called This (Stored) Life by Patricia Meldrum. It starts like this “I search through the plastic food bags looking for a piece of paper I know I wouldn’t have thrown away.” Later that night I decided to have one more look in a plastic bag of belongings at the back of my wardrobe and, yes, there were my papers! Have no recollection of putting them there, but there they were! St Tony and my Mum did a good job!
With all of those beautiful spring weather pictures, I thought you’d be off about town…so sorry to hear your searching for papers. Weill I always feel better when I clean up the clutter…here’s to future good feelings at a clutter free home! 😀 See you soon!
Mrs P, my searching has already produced results, including finding the missing papers. So I gave myself time off this afternoon and went gallivanting. It was good to get some fresh air. 😀
I’m wishing you speedy success, Gallivanta. Years ago, I misplaced a very special pin that my grandmother had given to my mother, who then gave it to me. I was going to give it to my daughter for Christmas, but when I went to the box I’d used to so carefully store it, the little box was gone! I spent weeks searching, dumping drawers, crawling in closets, checking every possible place. Finally I had to do what you’re doing, calling a time out and focusing only on that one priority. I found it tucked in the toe of a shoe and then in a shoe box. Friends say that was actually a smart place to put it for safekeeping. But I still do no think I ever put it there…
I am so glad you found the special pin. Gives me hope that I will be successful if I just keep plodding my way through everything. Do you think, perhaps, there really are little Borrowers in our homes? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Borrowers How else do things end up in such mysterious places. 😉
Here I am, showing up late again! I hope you get through your chores as easily and with as little stress as possible. I can get very overwhelmed about that kind of project, too, but it feels wonderful when you start seeing progress! I’ll miss your posts!
Kerry, I am making good progress. For a start the missing papers have been located. Now I have to keep up my enthusiasm to complete the de-cluttering process.
Good luck with your great project, Gallivanta! I’m exactly like you, I wait with going through my paper piles in drawers until it’s unavoidable. Luckily my hubs is more organized and has been working on a similar project this whole week…I think I’ll need to pitch in soon. My hat off to you 🙂
I wish you strength! Mine is already fading. Mind you, we are having an unseasonably hot day, which is draining in itself. Rather heat though than the huge snowfalls hitting the US.
My dear Gallivanta, I have enjoyed this post especially. The comments, as always are exceptional and give breadth and depth to the discussion. I wish for you – speed and efficiency in your mission to de-clutter! I have found that we understand how to accumulate, but we are rather inept at de-accumulating. And it is not because we do not know how to organize or clean, or systematize. For me, it is embracing and dealing with the emotions that come with the process of “letting go.”. “Things” come to represent a time, a person, an event that have great meaning. I still keep my mother’s place-card holder from her wedding over 63 years ago. I have my father’s date book which contains hand-written notes. And then there is my son’s first Mother’s Day card that he laboured hours to make just right; my husband’s card from our first anniversary.
But as John Ruskin once said, “Every increased possession loads us with new weariness.” I am learning how to determine the difference between possession and experience. Maybe that is the real lesson for me to accept.
Clanmother, by now you know the good news that I have found my papers. What a lot of weariness they brought me! John Ruskin is right. I will continue with my de-cluttering adventure trying to decide what needs to be kept and what needs to go. At the point where I thought I would not ever find my papers, my son, who loses things regularly, encouraged me to keep calm and carry on. If the papers had been lost, it would not have been the end of the world; just a brief period of aggravation. He pointed out there were solutions and ways to replace what I had mislaid. 🙂
I am frustrated when something is lost, not because I feel sorry for the loss, but because it happened.
Sometimes it is necessary to abandon the daily routine and devote time to yourself and your hobbies, to find peace of mind.
Yes, Alex, I feel unreasonably cross with myself if I lose something. I need to learn to let go of those sorts of happenings. But some things are very hard to learn. 😦 I enjoy my WordPress routine, so I hope I won’t be away too long. Hope you are managing okay in all that snow.
Thank you for your concern, Anna.
We are lucky enough do not have a lot of snow. It just covered a little bit the grass and trees. Unlike us New York state in US has a big trouble. Buffalo is only 130 km from Toronto but people there suffer from huge amount of snow. Actually, they have big snowfalls every year because of so callwd “lake effect” (city is situated between two lakes Ontario and Erie and somehow that affect it). However this year the situatiin is abnormal.
Ah, good to know. I watch BBC news most evenings before I go to bed. They mention various places and give international weather reports but it is often hard to be sure exactly which areas are affected by various weather events, and I don’t always have time to cross check via Google.
if you’d like a bit of frivolity in your search for lost documents and peace of mind, here it is.
Some years ago it became common in Austin to see cars with bumper stickers saying “Visualize world peace.” After a while someone irreverent came out with a follow-up bumper sticker, which also became popular, and which said “Visualize whirled peas.”
LOL! Whirled peas are easier to visualize than world peace, I have to say. On my recent trip I went past a dairy area. There was a judder bar crossing nearby and some wit, of course, had obliterated the J which meant the sign read, “udder crossing.”
I had to look up “judder bar” to find out what it is. The American Heritage Dictionary says judder may be a portmanteau word made from jerk and shudder.
I did not know that, but that is certainly how it feels going over them.
Decluttering feels so good! There was a pile of old mail to go through and file that was sitting on top of the kitchen counter for a good while. Once I finally went through it the other day, I felt victorious. For some reason nobody was there to present me with my Declutter Trophy, so I patted myself on the back.
Good luck, Gallivanta!
Britt, I am sending you a huge, but gentle, pat for your back. I have, this morning, attempted to clear one drawer of papers. Half way through and I am exhausted. Can not bear to look at another piece today. Who says we live in a paperless society?!!!!!
I smiled a wry smile as I read this – because I do my most significant clutter clearing when I’ve lost something. It’s a great motivator. I hope it all goes well for you and results in a big energy release and space for much newness.
Yes, it’s a powerful motivator. And, of course, as is the way of lost things, I will find, after a massive clear out, that the lost article was not lost at all but just two inches to the right of where it always was…or something like that, hopefully.
I hope you find what you are looking for. I can understand how this can disturb you. Sometimes, you need to let it go for awhile to find your peace of mind first 🙂 Good luck!
Yes, I think that is the right order, YC. It’s hard to think when the mind is fretting and worried.
By the way, your pictures give me peace of mind.
Thank you YC. Those were just a few of the lovely places we visited when we were in Timaru recently.
It’s frustrating to mislay things, especially of such importance. But if it leads you to a period of decluttering perhaps it can be a good cleansing period as you enter into summer. A fresh start. As long as you find those darn papers!
Still the papers are no where to be seen! Frustration is mounting. Time to rest for the day. By the way, when I get to clearing out my fridge, would you like to come over and give me a hand, and show me your superior fridge organizing skills? My fridge will seem like a heatwave compared to what you are having at the moment.
I would be most delighted! I just cleaned my parents’ fridge this week, haha. It has been very cold here but no snow for the moment. I’ve been enjoying the cold though, the coziness of being bundled (of course, I say this at the start of the winter season….).
You’re on then. Now I just have to figure out a way to ‘magic’ you here. 😀
🙂
Oh, no. It’s a heart sink sensation when you discover that something important is missing. This message comes with hope that you will find the missing papers. Thank you for publishing the St Anthony prayer in full. I knew about the tradition of praying to him in the hope that he would restore lost items but that’s the first time I have seen the full prayer. 😉
JAA, my heart sank to my boots (actually I was wearing slippers 😉 ) and then it raced all over my body with anxiety, but I am feeling much calmer now. Perhaps St Anthony is starting to work on my case, already. 😉 I think there are other versions of the prayer but that is the one that came up first on Google. Hope the work in your house is going well and that you are keeping track of everything.
Oh dang, I’m crossing all fingers in the house that you might find it soon.
I hope that you will soon return to blogging 🙂 After all, it’s also a sort of routne and order *hint-hint* :)))
Would you cross your toes as well, please? I have been through one corner of the bedroom today; nice and tidy now but still no papers. 😦 Also had a trip to a shop where I often buy fruit and vegetables and I was thrilled to see that they now have a section with a lot of very good gf, organic, sustainable products. But I did not buy, YET, because I am de-cluttering, not acquiring. And, yes, blogging is a good routine. 🙂
Yes, crossing everything cross-able! 🙂
Yay!
I can’t stand losing things so I feel your pain. Last week we lost the keys to our neighbours house (that we a re looking after while they’re away). I searched for days (even in the garden) and eventually found them in the very place they were meant to be that i had checked ten times. Sometimes we just can’t ‘see’ things and it beats me how it happens 🙂
Best of luck with your decluttering. Do it slowly because as any good feng shui practitioner will tell you, it drains energy.
I really hope you enjoy the book and I’m SO happy you’re reading it 😀
No worries about doing things slowly. I have two speeds; slow and slower. 😀 Your story of the keys somehow made me think of “Winnie the Pooh – Chapter Four – In which Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One” So I went and listened to it via Youtube and it did make me laugh. There’s nothing like a bit of Pooh wisdom to fortify one’s spirits; oh and honey, too. That helps.
Decluttering house and mind is good. I am constantly decluttering my flat. Only just now I am giving away my in line skates and karate stuff, ad I won’t be needing it anymore… I rather dance.
Decluttering the mind is so useful and you might find your lost papers again.
Good luck!
I need your good luck wishes, Ute. 🙂 Now I know another one of your reasons for your positive outlook on life; you declutter regularly. I guess it’s like ‘flossing our teeth’; it should be done daily.
Haha yes I floss my flat too! 🙂
🙂 🙂 🙂
@”I guess it’s like ‘flossing our teeth’…” – yes, indeed, totally agree with this one, as I do it twice/day… 🙂 I’m serious.
* * *
my beloved hubby is organized & meticulous, so he’s always dealt with all our important papers – which seems really boring to me… 😉 btw, we often find “lost” stuff if/when we don’t need it anymore… 🙂 bon courage & bonne chance, Lady-G! 🙂
Important papers, sorting papers, filing papers…..very boring, I agree. I could scan everything I suppose but then there’s always some organisation that needs to see the original. When we travelled a lot I was a meticulous record keeper. But now we stay in one place I have become lazy. However, success is mine; the papers have been found. 🙂 🙂
Reading through the comments I see this is about a little more than just decluttering. The trauma from the earthquakes has played a large role you say and if you are feeling it is time to let go then you have entered a healing stage which while an excellent phase to be in, does demand our focus, our energy and takes time. You are doing everything exactly right! Do you know I feel so proud of you 🙂 I did this same thing earlier this year and if you are like me, then you will find what you need to find, let go of what is no longer required and you will feel so much lighter and brighter – it’s like a wee miracle! xoxo
Pauline, it is like a wee miracle, especially now that I have found the important papers. (See my comment to Shoreacres). I am not going to stop de-cluttering yet though; it is, as you say, good to let go. I have one more drawer to sort in the bedroom and then that area will be at peace with itself and with me.
Gallivanta, areas of our house get like that too and the thought of going through the process of clearing stuff out just seems too big sometimes lol. We have two small rooms, one upstairs and one downstairs, that get used as storage/chuck it in there and forget about it rooms and every time I go to look for something in either of them I just shut the door in horror at the mess we have created in them! But I do like orderly and get frustrated with mess so I hear you….the feeling of achieving some control would be nice. Enjoy your time out, I do that occasionally and don’t miss it really 🙂
My garage and my attic space are chuck-it-in-there spaces. I probably won’t get them cleared this time round. If I manage to clear the cupboards and drawers and shelves in the rest of the house, I will be more than happy. Rest of the house, excluding the rooms of my absent offspring; they are a whole other story; a diabolical one. 😉
Oh…I hear ya! Good luck!
🙂 And good luck with your water issues.
Ugh!…. thank you 🙂
🙂
oh a kindred spirit!!! I need to do this—thank you admitting to how tiring it is to do…..it does grow-lol I do this every winter but it is hard to motivate myself—thank you for inspiring + I will get to it …soon-lol…no, I really will!!
I am glad I will have company in my de-cluttering exercise. 🙂 When we take a break we can sip on chocolate mint tea.
lol…you made me laugh- I am heading off to bed for the night so this was a nice chuckle:-) Yep, if you are ever near me—I’ll keep the pot of chocolate mint tea warm for you if you stop by!
Wonderful to know it’s ready and waiting. 🙂
+ I wanted you to know , I appreciated your openness about decluttering…it is my winter ritual! Lol…so good to know, I am not alone!
🙂 🙂
Hope you find those important papers soon. Have a good rest and take time to think through, it will help. All the best,and prayers… 🙂
Thank you Iris for your good wishes and prayers.
Best of luck and throw lots away. You want miss it ten minutes after it’s gone. Enjoy and relax.
Thanks Dannie. With my brain in its present state I won’t even remember what I discarded even a minute after I have done so!
Your reaction to the earthquake reminds me of the way my parents’ generation dealt with the aftermath of the depression…don’t throw anything away, you might need it. My mother was a master at this, which is why cleaning out their house last year was a bit of a nightmare. Good for you for taking the time and energy to really think things through as you slough off the items that are cluttering up your life. I will miss you though…
Virginia, I think I can imagine the nightmare you found at your mother’s house. My parents are from that Depression era, too, and they hate to part with anything that may still have a use. To a certain extent, that way of living is part of my psyche as well; it’s the default position, and one that I constantly have to reset. Whilst I am gone, here’s something that may give you a smile. The giraffes have come to Christchurch. Not quite as large as yours, though. https://www.facebook.com/christchurchstandstall/posts/836159469737415
Thanks for the link…I love the pink icing on the giraffe! I hope you have a productive time off, and that you feel much less cluttered when you return…
Hope so. At the moment I just feel exhausted.
Good luck with your decluttering mission, finding of lost articles and retrieval of peace of mind. I lost some leather gloves during a shopping mission the other day. Alas, I think they ended up on a floor of a bus, though they avoided that fate for many years. Such losses always bring one to a point of self-admonishment and some level of angst but, sadly, I think I have to let them go.
Oh what a bother. Now begins the long search for another pair of gloves that will fit perfectly. I had the same pair of leather gloves for years. They were lost and found many times but they met their end when Jack got hold of them when he was a puppy. 😦 I have had a few pairs since but nothing quite as nice as that particular pair. At least I know what happened to those favourite gloves; it really is the not knowing the how, when and where of the loss that is so vexatious.
This realization that you’ve had will, I hope, cleanse your inner spirit. Sometimes we must sequester ourselves. We must find that internal space to mend and rejuvenate whatever it is that needs attention. Will be sending you warm wishes and hope that they reach you. Have a quiet and peaceful Thanksgiving with loved ones. It’s a holiday that honors gratitude, which should be in our daily vocabulary. Have a good retreat.
A Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, Sally. I am very grateful for your understanding.
Oh Gallivanta, I hope you find your papers, get your house delightfully de-cluttered and organized. I am affraid I am a fastidious meticulous maniac when it comes to that…I even life by the strict rule, if something comes into the house…something else has to leave. There are up and down sides to every life style ;0)
But most of all, I wish you good re-cupperation and tranquillity and joy! Love from the other side of the world, Johanna
I have let things slip and slide Johanna. I am usually meticulous, especially about important things, like personal papers. The fact that I haven’t a clue what I have done with them, is a wake up call. Thanks for your good wishes. They will fortify me.
I will miss you, but I can most certainly understand your need to ‘back-up-and-regroup’, I think we could all use that once in a while, Ann. You take care – get your organizing and R&R time in – and we’ll be here waiting for you!! All the best!!
I’ll try not to be gone too long. 🙂 Hope I don’t get lost in my mess, though. Perhaps I need to put a note on the fridge telling people where they might find me. Actually, in all seriousness, I probably should get on with something like these Life Tubes: http://info.ageconcerncan.org.nz/organisations/224 Thanks for your good wishes.
De-clutter, simplify, peace (don’t be gone too long) 🙂
Hopefully I will be back before Christmas. By the way, your music will get a lot of play as I go about my simplifying. 🙂 Pale Blue Dot features several times a day, at the moment, in this household.
I don’t know where I read not too long ago a trick that is said to work: tie a bright white handkerchief or napkin on a chair some place prominent in your field of view. Supposedly, it will break up your “way of seeing” habitually and free you up to really see your space. I think that what you are looking for is probably not in plain view but it couldn’t hurt to try!
The methods described by earthbornliving are perfect! I learned a lot from the book “Clearing your clutter with Feng Shui” by Karen Kingston too.
Good Luck and am sending thoughts of Peace on a wing to you…
Peace thoughts gratefully received Heather. I like the idea of tying a white napkin to break my way of seeing. Okay, so, now let me see where do my napkins hide out? Would a paper towel do? 😉 The photos I see of your place show the beauty that can be attained by de-cluttering and by consulting Feng Shui.
Thank you for the compliment but we have moved so many times recently – four times since 2005! – that we have had to really get rid of so much, which is great actually. 🙂 And now Remi and I both agree that we don’t want to bring things into the house unless it is something practical that we really, really need. It helps that we really love everything that we have though!
Moving a lot is a great way to reduce clutter ( a drastic way but a great way). When we were moving from place to place, we had to keep our belongings to a minimum, but now that we have been in one place for 15 years we have accumulated far too much. It’s not so much that we have bought masses of stuff but that we haven’t dealt with the small things eg do we really need a cupboard full of plastic containers? Is that mountain of scrap paper necessary? When will we ever need that much pre-loved wrapping paper? And is it essential to keep that 15 year old plate with 2 chips in it? Like you, I want to have only things that I need and/or love.
It’s good to organize and de-clutter from time to time. You’ll feel much better after it’s done. 🙂
I am looking forward to that feeling.
I never lose anything until I need it. 😦
I had a lot of closet clutter. I boxed it all up and sent it to the kids….it was all theirs anyway.
I recently gave a bunch of things away to a resale place that supports an animal shelter. I haven’t missed a bit of it.
My husband is a keeper. I mean he keeps everything and a few times it has been worth $$.
And I plan to keep him too. 🙂
Enjoy your break and return refreshed.
I certainly didn’t know my papers were lost until I needed them! And, yes, about 60% of the stuff in my attic and store room belongs to my children. I would LOVE to send it to them but it would cost a fortune to do so. Apart from his share of the house, all my husband’s belongings would fit in to a large trunk. He’s a minimalist. Thank goodness! I’ll keep him too. 🙂
Spring is the perfect time for de-cluttering and sorting, but I look at my clutter and wonder where to start. I wish you every success in your search for the papers, for tidiness and for peace of mind. Those tidy cupboards will be a joy and a satisfaction to you!
And it will be an even greater joy if I find those papers!!! I wonder what else I will find that I hadn’t realized I had lost. 😀
Really Whole- hearted good wishes for the space clearing – go slowly –
I became so aware of the energy ups and downs when in this process. So I had long pauses, embarked on just one room at a time with three empty cardboard boxes lined up one for items to give to charitable causes, one to keep but needing further sorting one box for recycling. Then each room was treated to a mini spring clean. Windows opened -fresh flowers -music and afterwards I rewarded myself with long soaks in a bath. There were areas where I became stuck so enlisted friends help – I began by going on a tour of the whole place with a notebook looking at each area with an objective eye then set myself goals and a list which was so good to tick as each task was complete and oh the treasures I found… I began in earnest in the January and moved house in September and the less I was left with became so much more treasured. Good luck to you the peace will be found and let us know how you are getting on 🙂
I do wish I could have you over to help me out! Your approach is exemplary. I did start a few months ago with just putting out a small box full once a day, but really my problems are greater than that. Part of the trouble has actually been that after the earthquakes, I couldn’t throw anything away. I kept thinking that I must keep things in case we needed them eg must keep those old tatty socks because if we have an earthquake we won’t be able to wash, and we will need lots of clothes, no matter if they are tatty. Then instead of buying just one tin of beans, I bought 6, just in case, we couldn’t get to the shops because of an earthquake. So you can imagine how things have built up with 4 years of living like that!! Thanks for the encouragement. I am going to enjoy having less.
Yes and I would so love to come help, it is a feeling that a full nest will provide come what may and that more will keep us safe – trauma wobbles our trust. It must be a sign now that for you, there is the feeling of a little more safety to even begin considering this process. When we let go we find we find what truly sustains us …. When nothing else can – and another pair of hands hold us. Go gently, slowly at your pace. I had always felt an existential fear so more had always been more – the fear had to be addressed. Small changes, live with them see if they feel comfortable. I heard a poem by a woman preacher the other day about letting go I’ll try and find it. Take good care of you – enlist helpers, family friends and you will find it becomes easier but there will inevitably be the difficult days when you pause re-group the no action days just as important. Start small, one cupboard. 🙂
It would be good to see the poem. 🙂 Pre-earthquakes I had become quite good at letting go and was feeling rather pleased with myself. Ha! But, yes, I will go slowly because my energy resources are low. And I have to be very careful about dust because of my asthma susceptibility. I will imagine you keeping me virtual company.
🙂
I have just found the poem it’s quite long so I’ll put it on my blog in a few mins. 🙂
Ah, that is perfect. Thank you. http://earthbornliving.me/2014/11/19/letting-go/#comment-1208 I have put the link here in case others would like to visit and sense the loveliness of letting go.
I don’t know if anyone else can get through to St Anthony bc i have him on speed dial. I feel your pain and I am declutterring too. after months of looking at things. I can’t stand wasting time looking for things and the frustration it causes. I hope you find success and get it done quickly and find everything!!
Frustration and waste of time (and my own stupidity)…..yes, yes, such a pain. My aim is to open a cupboard and to be able to see everything at a glance.