Day 4: Clutter

"Visible or invisible, clutter is anything that gets in the way of experiencing your true nature and best life."

To re-wire our sense of being overwhelmed, we need to

1. Slow down

2.  Set out to do achievable tasks

3.  Let them be a constant... a lifestyle


"R & R"  = Reduce and repeat.  Make the task smaller and shorter and repeat it every day (even if it's just a little bit).  

Simple, conscious, slow-drip approach to clearing... will start to feel good.

1 minute of reduce and repeat every day huh?  

Okay...

• After doing the closed-eye exercise I noticed______I was really sleepy and took a nap -- ha.  It's true.  But I also realized what I want to start with on decluttering.  And the ideas came quick and clear.  I saw the art on my walls with fresh eyes as to its value (symbolic of truth or relationships I hold dear), or its unartfulness -- time to put it aside.

        I think the boys are old enough now that I don't have to keep every piece of artwork of theirs that strikes me.  I don't have to have all those reminders in sight.  I can organize them or let go of them, compile them into a mosaic of artful memorabilia, or re-purpose, re-paint, or re-do them.  Ahh...

• Surprising ways that clutter shows up in my life are______things broken that need fixing and I don't have a quick and easy fix for them, but I also can't bear to throw them out because that feels wasteful.  Or, I didn't get them out in the first place, or I see them as belonging to someone else and therefore not "mine" or "my responsibility".  So... there they sit.  Hmm....

This was a good exercise.  I appreciate how the lesson did not feel overwhelming or induce guilt, but a small daily practice of seeing and short doable actions.

I feel encouraged by that.

A year from now, one could walk into my house and sense appointment and taste in the space, rather than all the wall space declaring freedom and personal connection.  I will gradually become more selective.

Amen.