House of Mirrors
I've been thinking a lot about decluttering. It's my second favorite topic, next to my near-senile age. I've talked about simplifying my life but the closest I get to leaves of grass is when I mow the lawn.
So I was posting a comment on otter's excellent blog (link to the right) and it got me thinking about clutter, and the whole decluttering process. Specifically, I had commented that my desire to declutter was the desire to filter the distractions from my life. It isn't the clutter's fault that I get distracted, it is my fault for letting myself be distracted by it. Upon subsequent reflection, there are parts of me that agree with that, and parts of me that do not.
The part that agrees with that says that ones internal emotional wellbeing is completely independent of the circumstances in which one finds themselves. Ever see someone cool in a crisis? If they walked into the flea-market that is my home, they would still be able to be focused and calm; centered. And that part of me envies that ability. To insulate ones external surroundings from ones internal balance is a skill and one that, I think, is necessary for weathering the storms we encounter in life.
We should all have an unshakable internal calm
And then there is the other side of me that wants to call BS on the whole thing. Why? Because the discussion above is not speaking of walking into someone else's mess. The discussion is the clutter that we generate, ourselves, in our lives. As such, our houses are reflections of our internal state and the clutter is a reflection of that state. As such, it is impossible, if not plain silly, to try and draw a line between the two.
Our house is a mirror of ourselves
So, which is it? By looking at my house one can clearly decide that I can't answer that question (and rapidly fluctuate between the two). One thing is clear to me, though: I have a drive to build and to create. The things I keep are often things that I think drive my creativity, or things that could be used as tools, or things that could be used as materials for projects. Unfortunately, for us MacGyver (sp?) creative types, that means we keep everything.
I keep everything for its potential future utility
I'm starting to lean towards understanding that a substantive change in surrounding clutter implies a substantive change to the way one thinks. I think I'm going to shorten the words future utility down to just futility.
Linda assures me that it really isn't as bad as all that. We moved into the house 2 years ago this summer. Since then we have put a hot tub, deck, patio, and retaining wall in the house. I've set up a small woodshop in the garage, built a home-brew PVR and kept up with graduate classes and jujitsu classes. Don't even get me started on the upstairs hallway. Some of our clutter derives from our just being constantly busy. Maybe, come this spring, as our house workload subsides we will find the time (emotionally and physically) to give our house a necessary clean sweep.
Of course, that means when you are invited over to the house, stop by wearing work clothes. 8)
_Ed
So I was posting a comment on otter's excellent blog (link to the right) and it got me thinking about clutter, and the whole decluttering process. Specifically, I had commented that my desire to declutter was the desire to filter the distractions from my life. It isn't the clutter's fault that I get distracted, it is my fault for letting myself be distracted by it. Upon subsequent reflection, there are parts of me that agree with that, and parts of me that do not.
The part that agrees with that says that ones internal emotional wellbeing is completely independent of the circumstances in which one finds themselves. Ever see someone cool in a crisis? If they walked into the flea-market that is my home, they would still be able to be focused and calm; centered. And that part of me envies that ability. To insulate ones external surroundings from ones internal balance is a skill and one that, I think, is necessary for weathering the storms we encounter in life.
We should all have an unshakable internal calm
And then there is the other side of me that wants to call BS on the whole thing. Why? Because the discussion above is not speaking of walking into someone else's mess. The discussion is the clutter that we generate, ourselves, in our lives. As such, our houses are reflections of our internal state and the clutter is a reflection of that state. As such, it is impossible, if not plain silly, to try and draw a line between the two.
Our house is a mirror of ourselves
So, which is it? By looking at my house one can clearly decide that I can't answer that question (and rapidly fluctuate between the two). One thing is clear to me, though: I have a drive to build and to create. The things I keep are often things that I think drive my creativity, or things that could be used as tools, or things that could be used as materials for projects. Unfortunately, for us MacGyver (sp?) creative types, that means we keep everything.
I keep everything for its potential future utility
I'm starting to lean towards understanding that a substantive change in surrounding clutter implies a substantive change to the way one thinks. I think I'm going to shorten the words future utility down to just futility.
Linda assures me that it really isn't as bad as all that. We moved into the house 2 years ago this summer. Since then we have put a hot tub, deck, patio, and retaining wall in the house. I've set up a small woodshop in the garage, built a home-brew PVR and kept up with graduate classes and jujitsu classes. Don't even get me started on the upstairs hallway. Some of our clutter derives from our just being constantly busy. Maybe, come this spring, as our house workload subsides we will find the time (emotionally and physically) to give our house a necessary clean sweep.
Of course, that means when you are invited over to the house, stop by wearing work clothes. 8)
_Ed
posted by Ed at 11:40 PM
6 Comments:
Two things:
#1 Have you been watching Clean Sweep again?
#2 What the HELL is Richard Dean Anderson doing on your blog?! WITH A MULLET!!!!
According to Feng Shui (of which there are many methods and types), the general consensus is, that your house does indeed mirror yourself.
For instance, depending on which menthod you look at, the attic or the basement, represent your subconscious. (So many people flip out when I tell them that...)
Now, how that works when you've got a spouse, or a roomate living with you, really makes things interesting...
In any case, as a past "save it because I'll be able to use it someday" person, I can attest, that the more you let go of, the better you feel.
It actually can get addicting. You get to the point where you start to really, really think about what you really need. And that too, can spill over into other areas of your life.
There are so many aspects to this... I think I'll spare you and stop now. (Can you tell I've been working with this for a while?) :)
I think that is why people have such differing approaches to cleaning. Now, if we restrict clutter to just *junk* that we don't throw away because we are lazy, then we all should probably declutter. But the absence of clutter is not a spartan environment.
When I want my house to be a reflection of myself, I want it to be full of interesting things, showcasing a variety of hobbies and tools used within them.
In fact, my desire to declutter is to make room for more items of substance! 8)
Sometimes I walk into a home that is bereft of not just clutter, but warmth. No curtains. Nothing on the tables. Few pictures on the walls. The bare necessity of furniture. Indeed there are times when such a place is needed to abolish distraction but a retreat space is, by definition, someplace you go to retreat from your everyday. It is no longer a retreat when it becomes your everyday.
Hence, it is always a struggle for me. Either way, I've enough clutter-junk to get rid of before I need to start thinking of other things! 8)
-Ed
As Flylady says, if you don't absolutely love it, or use it, then it's clutter.
I hear you on those houses that are so minimalistic you feel as though you are in a hospital. My personal preference is a place that leaves one feeling cozy and welcomed, with things you know have meaning to the owner of the house. You can feel it when you walk into the door. There's stuff, but not so much you feel claustrophobic, but plenty so that it feels lived in and loved.
And yes, I find that when you do get rid of the clutter, more things (usually that you love, if not really, really like) always find a way in.
I am of the mindset from Clean Sweep... it has helped me get over some of my hold ups about 'stuff.' The one thing that REALLY bugs me about people who don't want to get rid of things is this phrase:
"The day after you get rid of it, you will need it."
And to be honest, I have gotten rid of plenty of things never needed them since.
I am a firm believer in if it means something to you, you need to live with it. In that it should have a daily reminder of its importance to you. A picture of your grandparents, a degree from Loyola, etc. Having a wonderful set of china locked up and never used is not healthy in my opinion. Either display it to help you enjoy it, use it, or be done with it. If it is an investment, then store it as such.
Don't let things own you. Take pride in what you have, live with your things, and let them be a reflection of you.
Here, here Phil!
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