Let’s be very honest here. We all have clutter. Don’t lie. One of the biggest culprits, if not the biggest, is the barrage of sentimental items we keep holding onto.

How many of us have that one (just one?) closet in their home packed full of boxes, zippered storage bags full with photographs, childhood items and too many other items you have likely forgotten all about. The thought of parting with any of them, well, that rarely occurs because there is always some reason to keep hanging onto things. Our intentions are always to possibly to pass them down to family or a friend but meanwhile, there are just so many memories tucked away, our homes become storage facilities.

Personally, I cringe at the thought of my own Christmas ornaments and decorations, some of which have lived in their respective boxes for years without movement. Yet, I’ve kept them and the thought of parting with any of them breaks my heart but my reasoning is to pass along the best of what is inside the piles of boxes. Grandchildren who will soon have their own homes and will be thrilled to share in my favorite collection of “stuff”.

Of course they will, that’s what I keep telling myself.

We all attempt to hold onto our respective pasts with family and friends who have either died or left us items which represent closed chapters in our lives. I do recall most of my life up to this point and time as well as those people, those “ghosts” without all of the papers, photos and other paraphernalia which live in the boxes stored in my home. All have been saved to remember, yet, I was doing a fairly good job of doing that without all of them, or so I thought. Even today, I came across an object and said out loud to myself, “what the hell is this? when going through a particular box. As I continued to talk to myself, I thought about who saves crap like what I found.

Evidently, I did, at some point in the past.

Then, the emotions involved with letting so much go steps in and takes over until we realize that everything we’ve stored away has become a museum of our lives. We all can remember our past along with those we’ve lost and share that with our families without an endless collection of boxes stored everywhere.

Think about it.

None of us need all of these things and not having them does not make the day or the memory any less special or important. We will still remember those important in our lives, their memories are their stories along with their wisdom and advice. Simple steps in identifying which items are most important to yourself and your family helps you to realize that you do not have to discard any collection. Honor your memories and your mementos.

Use them and if not, pass them along to someone who will appreciate them. Donate your wedding dress to a charity that gives wedding gowns a second life by turning them into prom dresses for girls unable to afford them. Repurpose the gadzillion T-shirts you have from everywhere and make a quilt. Take photographs of childhood toys and baby clothes you’ve saved. They don’t need to sit in the attic, let them be enjoyed now by a new generation.

Speaking of photographs, how many do you have on your phone? Yup, thought so. Scan them, put them on a flash drive or, in the cloud so that your past will be at your fingertips whenever you want to look at it. Good, bad or indifferent, all memories are in our hearts, not under the bed, in closets or in the attic. Letting go is freeing, useful and sentimental. We shouldn’t store things away because we’ve had them forever or, they were a gift. Don’t try to justify that you “might” need or want it someday. Trust me, that day never comes. As far as something possibly holding some significant value, sell it now. If it’s not really worth anything, forget the “maybes” and let it go.

By all means, keep those mementos but let go of the sentimental clutter.
Honor your past without cluttering your present. Find your balance!

From the Writer’s Workshop: Tell us the story of your favorite memento. I went off on a bit of a tangent here, mainly because it’s Spring and my favorite time for purging. Mementos are everywhere in my home. But, I cheated with my response and failed to ramble on about one of my favorite mementos because I felt most people would find it absolutely boring or not have any idea what it is. For what it’s worth, here it is. Don’t judge me…