Saving Beyond Value
I'm not a hoarder, but I am a saver. I save all sorts of things, many of which I cannot remember why I saved them. Sometimes I don’t even remember what they are.
Some I keep for decades, like the boxes of VCR tapes I saved so long they're no good anymore (unless you have a cultural icon museum).
Saving things is fine if I still like them, but if they are just a physical representation of a long-lost memory, it may be time to invoke early Marie Kondo, a master of saving only what you love.
Even if you don’t love something anymore, someone else might. I find it easier to get rid of “perfectly good things” if I know someone else can use them. There are Websites like Buy Nothing, OfferUp and FreeCycle as well as local organizations where you can shed things you no longer want.
I like to break my purges into chunks — divide and conquer has become one of my favorite strategies — and clean up one room or even a single drawer at a time. It feels surprisingly good, which is why I wonder why I still struggle to do it.
Yet after every trip to St. Vincent de Paul I feel lighter, and definitely worthy of some ice cream.
