Simplify, simplify. ~ Thoreau

[Diva]

I am coming back to this thread because I needed to.

A couple of months ago, I had a significant event in my life which has changed me. It has not been a pleasant change. I have 3 very dear friends who tell me I am being too hard on myself, but it really pisses me off that it has changed me and my outlook on many things. I am struggling to find a way to cope and I keep coming back to a more minimalistic lifestyle.

So I turned to Google and found >> THIS <<

It is helping me get rid of a lot of clutter....and not just the physical stuff, either.

All I know is that SOMEthing has to change in me. I have placed too much importance on things and people and events and less on peace and calm, my spirit's survival and the earth itself.

[Gemme]

Yesterday and today have been and are being devoted to this theme. It's a long road but we're getting there.

[girl_dee]

Diva I love the link you posted, especially the cookbook!

for me, I lost material things in a Katrina. I lost all the things I thought I "Could not live without";

my Disney salt and pepper shakers
Boat (that was a hard one)
ceramic knick knack thing that lived by the door for 10 years
rock collection
CD's
softball gear
etc....



Of course I could live without them! I can't tell you how good it feels not really feeling connected to *things* anymore. I still have sentimental items that I hold close but the unimportant clutter is gone and I realized the memories are never lost.

What I hold dear now are people, and the memory of the one special friend that I lost in the storm, not knick knacks. The memory of a City I loved before the storm changed everything. The what nots just don't matter anymore. Simplifying feels great!

[Gráinne]

I'm glad I found this thread. Ever since I got back from Washington, I've been thinking about how much clutter is in my life-not just stuff, but mental habits and wrong beliefs just taking up rent space. I'm really feeling a need not only to clean out my house, but to clean out my inner house, too. Too much spiritual, mental and physical clutter (ie. fat) here.

Getting rid of things and donating stuff is a tangible way to do it . That makes me feel good.

[girl_dee]

Freecycle is a great resource to clean out the clutter too!

It's been proven that cleaning out a closet is emotionally cleansing!

[DamselFly]

when i moved, i left behind most of my "stuff". the only things i brought w/me are some clothes, my teapots, my Taoist/Buddhist books (even though i can't read them at this time), and my altar. having little stuff gives a sense of freedom...as Lao-Tzu said,
to have little is to possess.
to have much is be perplexed.
a good blog to go to for writings on minimalism is zenhabits. i have it on my igoogle page. once at the end of every season, i do a "housecleaning" and donate the clothes i haven't worn that season. i figure if summer has gone by and i haven't worn something, i probably won't wear it next summer and don't need it. my objective is to get a week's worth of clothing for each season. that's it. always feminine, of course.
DamselFly

[Kelt]

This little article landed in my inbox today, and I thought this might be a good place for it. I consider myself to be a moderate minimalist but this made me realize that I still need to organize...hmm..or not, a couple of areas in my home.

Organizing is often well-planned hoarding

http://theminimalists.com/about/

We need to start thinking of organizing as a dirty word. It is, in fact, a sneaky little profanity—a pernicious little booger—who keeps us from simplifying our lives.

Our televisions would have us believe that there’s a battle being fought on the consumption continuum, a battle between the organizers and the hoarders. And from our couches it’s hard to see who’s winning.

We’d like to posit to you, however, that these two sides are working together, colluding to achieve the same thing: the accumulation of more stuff. One side—the hoarders—does so overtly, leaving everything out in the open, making them easy targets to sneer at. But the other side—the sneaky organizers—are more covert, more systematic, more devious when it comes to the accumulation of stuff. Ultimately, though, organizing is nothing more than well-planned hoarding.

Sure, both sides go about their hoarding differently, but the end result is not appreciably different. Whether our homes are strewn with wall-to-wall material possessions or we have a complex ordinal item-dispersal system, color-coded and alphabetized, we’re still not dealing with the real problem.

No matter how organized we are, we must continue to care for the stuff we organize, cleaning and sorting our methodically structured belongings. When we get rid of the superfluous stuff, however, we can focus on life’s more important aspects. Said another way: We can spend the day focusing on our health, on our relationships, on pursuing what we’re passionate about. Or we could, of course, reorganize our basement again.

Once the excess stuff is out of the way, staying organized is much easier anyway.

[socialjustice_fsu]

Thank you for the link and the synopsis of the article. I have been perplexed from time to time about this 'opposing' shift of view. Personally, I tend to lean more toward having what I need with a dash of objects that fill my senses, my wants. Following a move from a large home to a two bedroom apartment I took note at how much lighter I felt. My energy was not tempered down with stuff. Albeit, I had to take a long, skeptical look at the objects that stayed with me. I was taken aback by the amount of stuff I produced for a huge (successful) estate sale prior to my move. It was then I felt as if I was an organized hoarder. In the past I could spend hours upon days sorting, filing, and packing in just the right decorative box that, yes, I had spent a number of hours shopping for...only to discover there were some major issues I had going on in my life that I simply could ignore by diving into the perpetual move of organizing a box, drawer, closet. Now that I have been in my apartment a couple of years with much less stuff and a lot more chi I feel lighter, not so burdened with the organizing and the upkeep of such a system. I have also discovered that life really does pass one by rather they overtly or covertly hoard. Call it what you will...but I know now that when I jump into that "I need to revise, re-do, reorganize mode" - I just might need to take a look at what I am avoiding and find a healthy means to cope with it.

[cinnamongrrl]

Let me start by saying I do prefer organization...i strive for it. With teenagers...its not always feasible. One thing i HAVE learned... its SO important to have a place for things. Whenever I'm shopping at thrift stores, I always look for baskets, containers and totes. If i cant find an immediate need for it then my girls typically do.

We are getting ready to move, so it's a perfect time to declutter our lives. I went through my closet and have gotten rid of things that dont fit, I dont like or wear etc. I went through papers and whatnot and recycled a whole lot of stuff that way too.

In closing.....I can see where y'all are coming from...but theres no way Im getting rid of my books! :P