Mind Over Clutter – Is It Really That Complicated?
Posted on Monday, August 3rd, 2009
I’ve been doing a bit of research into clutter; why we create it, why it never ends, why we ignore it, and why it drives us crazy.
I thought it was a straight forward thing, you know, just clutter. But, in this age of Zen and Feng Shui, I’ve stumbled upon a whole New Age way to examine our clutter… and it is exhausting.
Clutter has an emotional life all its own. I sort of already knew that because when I open my “keeping for the sake of keeping” closet, I get a bit tired, promptly close the closet doors, and go directly to bed.
Needless to say, that closet doesn’t get a whole lot of attention. It just gets added to.
Many of us, especially at a certain age, quit cleaning out our stuff. We just keep it, knowing that the elusive “someday” when the children or grandchildren are old enough, they’ll start receiving those cherished items so they can start a closet of their own. I’d hate to deprive my family of that pleasure!
Of course, I’m not talking about extra crockpots or toasters… that crap’s gone. I’m talking about all those things we can’t destroy. My closet is full of decades of memorabilia. Is that clutter? Probably.
The Feng Shui notion of Space Clearing addresses clutter as an energy-zapping problem. The website Earth Transitions, which is dedicated to “this emerging new consciousness on the planet…” approaches the whole notion of clutter in a New Age fashion.
They propose that “To our subconscious mind, clutter triggers images of stagnation, stuck energy and places where Life doesn’t move. It usually represents the things we resist and places that we don’t want to put our attention.
Simply put: clean out the clutter. Piles of laundry, papers, boxes, mail…whatever it is, when we see clutter, our mind equates it with chaos and dead energy.”
Okay, I’m all for keeping the laundry done and the papers from piling up, but “chaos and dead energy”? That doesn’t sound like the clutter that is my memorabilia. That clutter represents who I am and where I came from. My mind does not equate my memorabilia with chaos and dead energy. Far from it! My memorabilia, no matter how much it may look like clutter, represents life and living and positive energy.
Granted, I could get in that closet once in awhile and clean out the dust and sort the stuff a little better, and I will probably do that someday. But, to say that all clutter is “chaos and dead energy”? I need to think about that one.
However, in my research I did learn something that I will put into action the next time I plan to sort out any of my closets. In the Feng Shui approach, clutter, even clutter we love, is low energy, so in order to deal with it, you have to create some high energy.
They suggest that you use high energy things like light, air, beauty, and music when you set up your closet cleaning ritual. You know, pull back the curtains, open the window, light some candles, play some music, and fill a vase with some fresh cut flowers.
That all sounds dandy, but my wonderful cousin gave me the incentive I really needed.
Yes, light, air, beauty, and music adds up to a nice ritual, but a glass of wine is going to be what gets the job done!
Thanks for that tip, Cousin! Perhaps tonight would be a good time to start cleaning out my clutter!
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Hi Patti and thanks for the post. As far as I’m concerned clutter is a reflection of who we are. I watched a documentary a while back and clutter was mentioned as being synonymous with brilliance. And who am I to prove them wrong…:) See ya…
Lyle
Hey there Lyle – If clutter is synonymous with brilliance, then I am a genius! But, seriously, you have a valid point there. I saw a report on CBS Sunday Morning one day when they were walking around everyone’s offices, showing off their clutter, and, WOW, I’ve got nothing on those folks! So, there has to be a certain amount of “free-range thinking” going on in order for the mind to wander and think great thoughts, eh? I will embrace my office clutter and keep my decluttering efforts limited to the rest of my house. Thanks for your thoughts!
Patti, check out a program on A&G called Hoarders. OMG … talk about an eye opening experience. I have a minor problem with hoarding (thank God) but i am always looking to throw out / give away / donate stuf that i dont use.
S
Thanks for the tip about “Hoarders” on A&G. I certainly will check it out. My clutter wasn’t quite so obvious when I had a bigger house!
😉
Thanks again!
I got tired of some boxes of memorabilia, so some of it I kept, but other stuff… I took pictures of and scrapbooked! Haha! Take that clutter!
Great idea about scrapbooking pictures of your stuff. I know what you mean about the memorabilia… I can’t bear to part with all those birthday cards (they’re antiques, after all!) and other sentimental things. But, you know, taking pictures and scrapbooking them is a very clever way to ‘have your cake and eat it too’.
Thanks!
Both my mother and father are serious hoarders. They have spent their lives running from everything and not dealing with anything, including all that junk. Memories are nice but if we can not process them and use what we learn without keeping some object, then we haven’t embraced the spiritual part of us. We haven’t fully integrated or processed things fully. We want to pass things on, but it is lessons, not objects, that we can best pass on. Love a person and that will go with them forever. Objects can be lost, stolen, or destroyed and do not guarantee that any good will be learned from them. That’s is my thinking at this point.
Hey Scott,
I can’t say as I practice what I preach here as well as I should. I do tend to hold onto anything that I deem valuable or has sentimental meaning.
Although, I was tested once. I was forced to leave my house one time due to a fire in the neighborhood that could possibly be spreading to the other houses. The fire fighters couldn’t guarantee they would be able to get it under control. I wasn’t given much time. As a matter of fact, they were very anxious to get me out of there. So, after about 30 seconds of being rooted to one spot, looking around my house, I grabbed my cat and left. That’s it. I thought “how do I choose?” No matter what I would choose to take, if the house burned to the ground, I would always mourn what I left behind. There was no way to come out of that feeling good. Fortunately, I didn’t lose my house or my belongings. I did learn something valuable though.
Even with that lesson, I still save memorabilia and often fear that it may all be lost some day. (We live in a hurricane area.) I have started to distribute what I can – giving it to other family members so my junk, errr…. memorabilia, is scattered about the countryside. That feels a bit better, but I have a lot more to clean out. It will feel good when I get to the point I would like to be – clutter free in mind, body, spirit, and closets!
Thanks for commenting!