There’s a little closet with shelves in our kitchen – one of the charming aspects of buying an older home, but one of the drawbacks of keeping things clean. Small house + shelves behind a door = cluttered shelves. I took out the medicine, beauty/health products, etc. Sorted everything out and got rid of a pile of stuff. To cut back on the number of boxes with bandaids, gauze, etc., I made a first aid kit and threw all of the boxes out. Everything is individually wrapped and labeled and doesn’t need to be stored in a box.
We need this supply of first aid, because of the type of lifestyle we are living. There are cuts and burns and things happen when you have a wood cooktop and work in a garden regularly. Again, the clutter is moved to reveal the real things we need to have and now it will be easy to access what we need.
So I’m not even counting this pile – it’s definitely 30.
With each of these days, the recycling, cleaning and donating creates physical space around me, but also creates mental space. Each item I can pass on for someone else to use or enjoy makes me happy!
I am starting again on December 1st for another round.
These are gifts to myself this holiday season:
Space – the volume of items gone has created space. Slowly, the things that are special to me are coming to the forefront and clutter around me is going away.
Time – I don’t have to search for the things I use.
Creativity – I had originally thought I would do the 50K words in November, but decided this project, this game was more important to me. I envision a place of great writing when I am finished.
Observations: By default, what we are doing here on our little lot, the Permaculture projects, gardening, and wood stove, etc. create the need for tools and storage for many items. Because they all serve a purpose, I don’t even consider them for this game. However, with less to maintain inside and keep track of, I hope to work on more projects and in the spring and introduce some animals to our little urban farm. I couldn’t see how to do this before I started this game – my time was consumed by keeping up with a bunch of things and there wasn’t any room to add to my day.
There is room now!