Two posts in one day?

Yep.

I’m ready to move on from decluttering being such a frequent topic.  I’m sure that I’ll never be completely decluttered around here – things will come and things will go as life continues.

But, I would like to focus more on the things that decluttering is helping me to accomplish…like more art, more creativity, more family time, more visiting with friends, more quiet time, more of everything that is positive and life-enriching…

And focus less on the “more” which is less inspiring:  more stuff, more housework, more stress, and more to-do’s that I don’t enjoy doing (that may not have made as much sense as I’d hoped when I thought it in my head.  It may have lost something in translation.)

Basically, I’d like to move on from the getting ready mindset and start doing what I’ve been working towards:  that more intentional life that I keep talking about.

Enough talking already.  Time to start doing is what I’m trying to say.

During this transitional month, I’m going to do one more big decluttering search and destroy mission.  I’ve been trying to  declutter 5 things a day for the month of June.

Here’s the list so far:

1. a humongous entertainment center type storage cabinet
2. a pair of shorts
3. a stapler
4. a lampshade
5. a stuffed animal
6. a handful of socks with no mates (why are these so hard for me to let go of?)
7. a stack of magazines
8. a down comforter
9. seeds saved from too many seasons ago
10. a stack of outdated “important” papers
11. a children’s book that I’d been saving for the illustrations
12. miscellaneous mason jar lids that don’t have jars to go with them
13. a headband
14. one shoe (can’t find the other one)
15. a visual journal barely used – made up of disappointingly flimsy paper
16. a picture frame with no glass that I kept thinking might be useful for something
17. a pants hanger that was almost impossible to hang pants on and even harder to remove the pants from
18. one of three cutting mats
19. lightbulbs that don’t fit anywhere in the house
20. a dusty cookbook (if I need a recipe, I almost always go to the internet)
21. wood scraps saved because they might be useful for something someday
22. a blouse that doesn’t fit quite right
23. bathing suits that my daughter has outgrown
24. a beach hat that has seen one too many trips to the beach
25. a summer dress that I had hoped to fit into this summer, but that obviously has no appreciation for the fact that I’ve given life to four children

Why am I providing such detail about my decluttering efforts, you might be asking?

Well, if anyone is struggling with clutter, maybe, just maybe, this list could inspire them to search for extra stuff that they don’t need in a new spot – to find things that they didn’t realize they had or hadn’t thought to search through.

We’re not in this alone.  This is something that a lot of folks are working through.   I don’t have any magic words or instructions that can really help.  I’m not going to tell you that having 3 bins to sort into is the answer,  or that there is a magic amount of time that will solve all your problems.  It’s truly about more than just the stuff.  Getting rid of things helps, but there is always an underlying problem that we’ve got to deal with.

The journey is worth the effort – no matter how long it takes.

I know.  I’ve struggled.  I’ve given up.  I’ve started over (and over) again.  I can see daylight at the end of the tunnel (and it’s not an oncoming train).  It’s the light shining on this blank canvas that I’m going to start work on first thing in the morning.

Tomorrow will be a new day with less and a whole lot more!.