An Organizer’s Nightmare

Want to hear an organizer’s nightmare? I mean really – a nightmare I had last week. We were moving from our New Hampshire house, and the new owners were there to take possession. I kept finding stuff we hadn’t sorted, purged, and packed. It was so stressful; there was more stuff everywhere I looked. I was still dealing with stuff when the new owner started moving in. (They blasted marching band music to announce their arrival; I thought it was great but worried that they might play music too loud for the neighborhood.)

That day I’d been reading about how our stuff can overwhelm us, requiring so much energy for moving and maintaining. I’d seen pictures from a realtor friend who’s dealing with a condo full of stuff that must be stored elsewhere in order for the home to be sold. Plus, I’d listened to a podcast with an organizer who married a minimalist and got rid of tons of stuff. All those things influenced my dream. But if I’m honest, it’s likely an example of an anxiety dream for me – a truly nightmarish situation of not being prepared for the move!

I can laugh at all of this (especially the marching band music) but there’s truth in there too. For some of my clients, their stuff feels so burdensome that its overwhelming in a variety of ways: stuff that got out of hand and is bursting at the seams, stuff wrapped in grief, stuff weighed down by clinging memories, unwanted stuff that they don’t know what to do with. The stuff of nightmares.

As Barbara Bougher and Teresa Worthingon write in Embracing Conscious Simplicity, “Clutter energy is the physical, emotional and mental drain we experience when we surround our self with things that do not serve our highest purpose.” As you look around your home, do you see stuff that isn’t serving you well? Do you feel stuck, unable to lighten the load? Maybe it’s time to begin making mindful choices about letting go of things, so that you can intentionally surround yourself with items that support your life and lift your spirits.