The Organizer Falls in Love and Almost Falls Apart
So, over this last year of Covid bizarreness, I randomly reached out to my High School crush and wouldn't you know it, that call changed my life! Turns out, the love of my life was right here all along! We decided to move in together so I hired my own OFab team to help me declutter and prep for my move. I, foolishly, thought I had this on lock. Eight years in the organization business, countless happy clients, how hard could this be, right? Hard. I mean "give me a minute," tears, stalling, not-ready-for-this hard. There were moments where my mind was reeling just trying to let go of a book I'd carried with me since college (and not read since then, I might add). A relatively simple decision was suddenly compounded by thoughts of "is this how my clients feel?" I mean, I was totally overwhelmed!
On a recent drive home from a client, I was listening to a podcast where it felt like the hosts were speaking directly to me: saying that moving is considered to be one of the top five major stressors in a person's life, next to a death in the family or the loss of a job. And where I am sure other factors come into play here, I could attest to that loud and clear!
Difficulty aside though, I did have some wonderful breakthrough moments. Finding some items that I'd completely forgotten about that brought back some wonderful memories - like the hilarious costume from a party where my friends and I dressed like our favorite movie character! It also made me realize that I don't have to keep an item just to keep the memory alive. In fact studies show that taking a photo of an item can help people let go of it knowing they can glance at the photo any time. Imagine how many fewer storage bins, closets, or units as well as savings you could have in exchange for a photo album? What about the joy those items could bring someone else instead of sitting in a room somewhere? Not only did I get a wicked trip down memory lane but I've officially started to pass down beloved items to my nieces and nephews. They get to breathe new life and memories, for both of us, into my things and stories I get to share with them!
For all the hurdles I encountered during this process, I gotta tell ya, the rewards do make it worth it. Decluttering not only let me take stock of just how lucky I've been but the sense of accomplishment in completing the job, and knowing I was that much closer to moving in with my incredible, kind, supportive boyfriend, was a really proud and satisfying moment for me. The science really doesn't lie - decluttering takes a weight off your shoulders folks. Have a clutter free Valentine's (and every) Day y'all!
