Decluttering

[lillibet]

This started as a comment elsewhere, in response to a friend reminiscing about a hoarder in her life, celebrating her decluttering routine and marveling at how complicated many guided processes seem. Since this comes up pretty frequently, I thought I'd re-post my thoughts here.Must be spring: there's a discussion on my FB that's pretty negative

Comments

[woodwardiocom]

Alice is now the main accumulator...

She should put that on her business cards.

[whitebird]

I agree, that is an excellent title.

[whitebird]

there's a discussion on my FB that's pretty negative about the whole decluttering movement from the other direction (the privilege that it assumes).

Does the parenthetical bit mean, "The privilege of having the money/space/ability to accumulate items?"

Because I don't understand what that part means.

I really, really need to declutter, but starting that project is a pain.

[lillibet]

No, the opposite. Getting rid of stuff in order to have less stuff assumes that if you ever need something you've discarded, you can afford to replace it. It also assumes that you have the not-inconsiderable time to spare to deal with getting rid of stuff. Both of those things are privileges and there are others. If you google "minimalism privilege" you'll get a lot of hits thinking about this aspect of it.

To be clear, that doesn't mean that I think one shouldn't do it, just that it's good to be mindful.

[whitebird]

Oh, okay. Well, that's a big load of assumptions on its own, though, too. For instance, I have a round bladed knife with a chopping board with a similarly curved indention on it from Alaska, that my mother gave me once. I never use it and will likely never use it and so could easily get rid of it. Decluttering doesn't have to be about getting rid of things you use, realistically, it shouldn't be that.

The time thing I fully understand, though because that's one of my issues. On the other hand, I know that I could spend 10 minutes, or even less, a day and make a considerable dent in what I've got.

[lillibet]

Sure, but you might need it someday. Or what if a friend gets married and you need a gift for them and you don't have the money that week? Or what if someone's house burns down and they need to restock their kitchen and they don't have a good knife? You never know... :)

[rmd]

When she was around my age, my mother regularly stated (while dealing with accumulated cruft) that "possessions are a burden." It took me a long time to understand that, but I certainly do.

[lillibet]

We ended up with stuff from both sets of grandparents and my nanny, all crammed into our house. At one point we had three dining room tables and four cedar chests. Around that time we went on vacation and as we drove around the block toward home, my mother said "Part of me thinks what a relief it would be to turn the corner and find the whole thing had burned down."

[kalliejenn2]

one of my biggest reasons for constant purging is that stuff (all stuff) takes time to maintain (and if you have a lot of it, you lose time by trying to find things). there is literally not a single thing in our apartment that, if you asked me where it is, i couldn't instantly find you

[lillibet]

Oh, yes. I think the fear can be unfounded and yet operative--it's kind of like our bodies wanting all the sugar and fat they can get.

[surrealestate]

You are totally my hero on this subject.

And as it happens, last year I gave something away that it turned out I needed a part of shortly thereafter. I knew the recipient would have insisted on returning it if they knew, too, so I had to be careful about where I said anything about it, but I did put my need out into the world and someone else had the thing I needed and gave it to me. So it all worked out.

[muffyjo]

Having spent a great deal of today sorting through clutter, I have to admit, mine is led by the paper movement...somehow everyone has to send me pieces of paper. I don't feel entitled by their pieces of paper, I feel deflated and fatigued with their weight. Now I have to make choices! And I've had too many choices to make so I stopped for a while and just let them pile up. But now I have had a day of sorting and dealing and sorting and dealing...and I have a dining room table back. :)

[lillibet]

Yes, paper is the Great Flood. For me it's easier to stop it at the door with tight routines, but I know that's not the answer for everyone. Congratulations on reclaiming your table!