Stack of books burning
I started clearing my desk yesterday. It is more of an art installation than a usable desk these days, and something has to go. Well, a lot has to go. The ice cream wrapper from two days ago was easy, as were the notes made on the backs of envelopes, but some things were harder to get rid of. All my poetry notes, for instance. Siegfried Sassoon’s papers were purchased by Cambridge University with the help of a £550,000 grant. I note that they contained financial papers and postcards – I could do that. I still have insurance papers relating to my Vespa and I certainly have postcards. I’m a little light on diaries written in the trenches (still with original mud) and letters from famous writers, but anyone who wants to wave £50 in my direction can have several box loads of my papers. Buyer collects.
I think it might have been Maya Angelou who never threw any notes out in case she needed them later. Unfortunately I can’t find any mention of it to post a link. That might be because it wasn’t her, so don’t quote me on this. I thought I should keep all my notes too, as they may contain something useful. I’ve been back to them looking for inspiration, but I cannot understand half my notes and I can’t read most of my own writing, so it’s a complete waste of time. I have books of poetry and notes that take up room and gather dust, but they are no use at all in creative terms. They will be going out this week.
Moustaches! Why don’t they just grow beards? The kids that is, not Julia. Best to be clear about that.
There are five, or six, or seven, or ten things you should never throw out when decluttering. It all depends on whether the writer of click bait ism being paid by the piece or by the word. It all boils down to this – you shouldn’t throw away important documents. The rest of the stuff, I feel, can go. Would you go back into a burning building to save pictures drawn by your unartistic children, or a collection of half-used ballpoint pens, or a selection of baby teeth? No? Well you can probably do without them.
I have the memories. so I don’t need the photos. When I lose my memories, I won’t be able to identify the people in the photographs anyway. We are, after all, just dust in the wind, and very little will remain of us after we go, apart from the memories of others and our blogs. And even they will eventually depixelate, or whatever old blogs do.
A man with time on his hands and buttons on his camera, is never short of something to do. It’s a bit like monkeys, typewriters and Shakespeare, but not as highly evolved.
I find decluttering is an iterative process. And even when one is decluttered and organized, more clutter will happen again, all on its own. 🙂
That’s what worries me – I need to alter my thinking and stop accumulating.
I am total agreement about child art, but I have thrown away things that I wish I hadn’t. That probably stands as a metaphor of my mainly wasted life.
Yes, it’s an ever-present danger. I have a bag of rugby shirts from various representative sides and tours – one day they may want these back. But maybe they will just find them when they clear the house and wonder why I kept them.
A philosophical approach. Mind you, I do have a framed picture Becky made when she was 6
Some things ar worth saving. I’m not a totally unfeeling monster. But my kids inherited my negligible art talents, so definitely not worth preserving. 🙂
Great post as always! It’s funny when we think of how much we save that doesn’t serve us anymore. I could talk about my mother, for example, who saved everything us kids did in school in the attic of the house we grew up in. When they moved here, it was all moved to the basement… It’s still there along with the stuff my grandma saved (and some that mom brought home when her cousin passed). I try not to do it myself, but sometimes there are things I hang on to for a while… Once in a while, I go through the “stuff” and start eliminating it… It’s good to de-clutter once in a while… Take care always, my friend!
I think I might enjoy it once I start. I once saw someone refer to it as “the tyranny or heirlooms”. 🙂
Very good!
I have a friend with kids ages 10 and 5. I had a whole conversation with her the other day about not needing to save every work they’ve ever done. I told her I have one piece of artwork from every year of grade school framed and hung, and I have one written project from every year of school when things were done in actual paper, and I tossed the rest. She was equal parts amazed and appalled.
Good system. About twenty years ago an aunt and uncle visited from South Africa. My dad pulled out all my old school reports to show them. I was nearly 50 nd it seems I had done nothing to make him proud since I was 16. I will say no more.
Yeah….
🙂