Misadventures of a Pack Rat - Day 1

Thankfully, I am not a hoarder.  However, I do have to admit to being a bit of a saver, an accumulator, a collector.  In other words, I am a pack rat.  I also happen to be married to a major pack rat and between us we have raised three more pack rats of our own.  The evidence is all around me, books spilling off of shelves, cupboards filled to overflowing, drawers that barely open because they are filled with papers and photos that need to be sorted.   Everywhere I look I find clutter. Not only the house but the attic, the basement and the garage are full of the accumulations of 30 years of living in the same place.  For the past couple of years, more and more I have come to the realization that some things really need to change. 

Most of the time we only want to share the beautiful spaces we have and I do keep my main living areas clean and clutter free.  However, there is also a lot of chaos in the background that I try to ignore and pretend isn't there. 

office

 

kitchen

garage

I think there is more than one kind of pack rat.  My husband is of the “waste not, want not” variety.  He saves things because he “might be able to use it someday”, triumphantly waving the two boards he has pulled from the pile of wood we have been walking around in the garage for the last 25 years.  My oldest son, on the other hand is a collector.  He is sure that his Dino-riders are going to be worth something someday.  Who knows?  Maybe he’s right.  I sure wish I had kept some of my old lunch boxes from when I was a kid.  Me?  I am more of an emotional collector.  I read the same books over and over because of the way they make me feel.  I also save books I think I should read but probably never will.  I keep things, I don’t even really like because they were given to me as a gift.  I save things because they remind me of people I cared about. I save things because maybe someday I will lose weight, go back to scrapbooking or knitting or quilting, the list of reasons is endless.  

Hall closet where I keep my photos & scrapbook supplies

Recently, I have been reading a book given to me by a sweet blogging friend called “The More Of Less” by Joshua Becker.  I very much doubt that I will ever become a minimalist.  I 'm not sure I even want to, but I definitely need to begin purging some stuff off the shelves, out of my closets and out of my life. I am tired of the extra stress it adds to my life.  I want to be be able to find what I want when I want it.  I want less to take care of and more time to just enjoy spending time with my family and friends. I want more time to read, more time in God's word, more time for prayer.

That is what these pages are going to be about.  I have tried to purge before and I am hoping that writing things down will help me to remain focused on the task. This will be my journal of the journey to a less cluttered life.  If you would like to come along with me you are welcome.  Here I go.