Sometimes we can find it hard to just get up and go. Things happen in life that we would rather just hide away from and instead of getting on with it, we fall in a heap and feel sorry for ourselves. Sometimes the catalyst for this behaviour seems quite trivial to some but can be a big deal to you when you are living it from your perspective.
Trust me though, curling up in a ball in front of the television isn’t the solution to anything and it certainly doesn’t make you feel better about yourself. Giving up only adds to your woes and makes life even more unbearable. What you have to do is push yourself out of the doom and gloom and find a purpose.
How does this relate to decluttering? It is very easy to see the mess around you and think it’s such a huge undertaking that you don’t know where to start. But like every situation in life it starts with one step. Push yourself to do ten minutes a day then wallow in your achievement and be glad of the progress you have made no matter how small. You may be so pleased that you will do twenty minutes a day next week. There is no limit as to how big or small the steps have to be so long as you are taking them. Immerse yourself in the task at hand and that will give you some temporary relief from your woes.
Since last Friday I have made the effort to start posting to my blog again and catching up on the decluttering I missed while my son was in ICU and it makes me feel human again. Liam’s progress is slow and even seems like it is going backwards at times but I feel better when I push myself to achieve regardless of what sort of day we have had. If I can make that sort of effort under these trying circumstances, I am sure you can join with me and soldier on with your decluttering.
ITEM 308 OF 365 LESS THINGS
Poor old Ted he has seen better days and I have finally got the OK from my daughter to let him go. Bye Ted and thanks Old Grandma for the good times that were had with this bear you made so many years ago. We will always remember you both.
5 Things I am grateful for today
- A new day and all the possibilities it brings.
- Sunshine to get the sheets dry.
- Coffee – I am just about to have one, I wish you could all join me we could have such a wonderful chat together.
- Whistling – I found myself doing it along with the I Dream Of Genie theme today. It is such a cheerful thing to do.
- A lovely evening with good friends
It would be fun to have coffee together! . . . I’m sure we all feel that about you. Keeping in touch through your blog is the next best thing. Good luck to you and your family this week, Colleen.
Hi Eve,
thank you! I would love nothing more than to meet you all personally. It was a lovely thought to enjoy while I had my coffee.
Still praying for Liam and your family. Hope that you are whistling more each day!
Thank you Holly,
I appreciate all the prayers and good wishes for Liam and the family. He is improving every day and I am smiling a lot more.
Everything has a way of stopping, at least momentarily, when my child is sick. Sure, we can’t always make the pain go away, but being by their side has a positive chemical effect whether they acknowledge it or not. Hope he’s better soon.
And little Ted is adorable.
Hi Belinda,
Yes, being with Liam and holding his hand I am sure brings great comfort not that he would have let me do that before the accident. I am making the most of it while I can just in case he reverts to his old self.
Little Ted was not so little he was about two feet long.
I’ve done it -hiding my head in the sand because I am completely overwhelmed. But it doesn’t go away if we refuse to think about and act on it. It just weighs on our subconscious.. and when we finally get around to doing it it feels so great, truly a burden lifted! Like undertaking decluttering my studio 🙂
But ooooh.. I’m not sure I could give up that Ted 🙂
Hi Cat’s Meow,
yes hiding your head in the sand only makes your butt look big. lol! I am so glad I had come to this realisation before Liam had his accident or I would be wallowing in so much self pity right now instead of getting on with life. I am sure it is far better for him to see us up beat and positive too.
My daughter had another teddy as well when I asked her if she wanted to keep it she took one look at the cute little pink thing and went ohhhhhhhh we have to keep that one.
Hey! I thought it was clutter that made your butt look big.
Hi Cindy,
I like to think that nothing makes my butt look big. lol
I’m with my fellow commentors. That teddy is too cute.
Thanks for the inspiration I needed to get off my you-know-what and get some cleaning done on a desk the kids use for art that gets stacked higher and higher.
Hi Cindy,
teddy is adorable but once put into my smelly wheely bin he aint comin’ out. Now there is a good decluttering strategy make sure you don’t wash your bin for a while and then when something gets put in there there is no way you are going to take it out if you have second thoughts. I think I had better clean the bin after Monday’s pick up though it is a bit disgusting.
Now THAT is an excellent idea–going to tell my husband about that one! First we’ll drop used catter litter in the bin, then add the cleanout items–guaranteed no returns. :-p
Oh eeewww…talk about a journey of no return.
Ok, I’m in, that Ted is just toooo darling!
Colleen, thanks for your message today. I’m stepping up to the plate and soldering on! Look out clutter…your time spent in my house/heart is coming to an END!!! Oh, and that ‘other stuff’ at the store (albeit a ‘thrift’ store), that I’ve had my EYE on…YOU CAN GO TO SOMEONE ELSES HOUSE – (I’ve got to STOP going to the stores; easier said than done!!!).
First, ya gotta admit you’ve got a problem, and you’ve achieved that milestone. Good job Annabelle. Shopping creates desire, desires lead to purchasing, purchasing leads to clutter – and less money for better and more important things.
Hi Annabelle,
Good for you! Onwards and upwards! No shopping = no new clutter.
Colleen I continue to pray for Liam, you, and your hubby. You are so right. I’ve certainly had those times where I just wanted to curl up in a ball and do nothing, shutting the world around me out. But, that doesn’t accomplish anything.
I’m following your lead and hope to start selling again on eBay soon. After unpacking I’m still finding things I simply don’t need any longer and they must go, hopefully bringing in some much needed income. ♥
Hi Betty Jo,
I have some eBay items to deal with too at the moment but have been putting off that task. Hopefully your efforts will inspire me to get off my butt and do something about it soon.
Thank you for all your prayers and well wishes, they seem to be working as he is improving all the time. It is almost time to head to the hospital and find out what trouble he has been causing the nurses last night. They will be glad to see the back of him I am sure. 🙂
Maybe this will inspire you Colleen. I hadn’t sold on Ebay in quite a while, and I was inspired by your accounting of how much you’d made selling your clutter. Following in your footsteps, I’ve made almost $1000 since June 1. I will admit that selling two chairs for $250 did give me a big boost, but the rest was more $50 – $10 per sale.
Is Liam still in ICU?
Hi Cindy,
yes that is a good record for eBay. I will get my act together soon.
I will write an update on Liam’s progress for tomorrow.
My money was from selling primarily on Craigslist, then Ebay and Amazon.com. Each of these venues is just right for somethings and not so right for others. Nonetheless, it was inspired by you.
I just threw away 2 plates with chips in them… Why was I keeping shabby looking plates when I have 3 sets of crockery, plenty more than we ever use in one day even with visitors! I used to hate looking at these crack plates but kept washing and using them… This feels like a pivotal day – Its okay to let go… hooray for me……!
Hi Bronwyn,
yes hooray for you. Isn’t it funny how we hang on to the strangest things. I have actually saved some of the strangest things till last with my decluttering but that is OK by me.
Good advice. You have been an amazing example, Colleen! Glad your son is progressing well.
After my cousin emailed me today to ask, “how do you start sorting photos?” I realized that I have been figuratively curled up in a ball about dealing with MY photos! The rest of the house is doing great, but those photos, oh, I can’t face them! It’s time to (wo)man up about them! (This is Willow giving herself a pep talk!)
Hi Willow,
I have quite a stash of photos myself that need dealing with but they aren’t the highest thing on my decluttering priority list. It is important to identify the people in the photos more than anything else before their identity is forgotten. I have been wanting to do this with my parents photos for years but I never seem to be home for long enough.
My cousin is a stay-at-home parent (no preschool) with a toddler and a baby due in 4 weeks. Less than a month ago, she ordered over 600 photos (a 5 pound box) with the idea of getting them all dealt with before the baby. Talk about problem photos!
Hi Cindy,
what I don’t understand about this is why do people still insist on having hard copies of so many photos? With all the digital photo albums out there now it makes a who lot of sense to stay digital. The photo organising software we use even has facial recognition which makes it easy to tag the photos with the identities of the people featured. 600 photos sounds like a lot of hard work for nothing to me.
Tomorrow is my day off, so I will be pushing myself to get a lot of decluttering done in the house. Yesterday my son spent the day with me decluttering my yard and flower beds before the really cold weather sets in. I feel a great sense of satisfaction with our accomplishments despite the wind which kept hampering our progress. This is the time of year when I feel the most motivated to get things done.
Hi Di,
you are making great progress inside and out it seems. My hubby promises me he is going to set up some eBay auctions tomorrow so that will take care of a few more items for me. Last time I looked my garden was looking pretty good but I need to plant some basil and some lily bulbs a neighbour gave me but it just won’t stop raining lately.