Deep Dive Decluttering

In a rare week with nothing on my calendar, I've stayed at home, emptying cabinets, pulling things out of drawers and then getting rid of lots of that stuff. According to Psychology Today, mess causes stress. I should be much more serene now.

It's a law of physics, isn't it? "Nature abhors a vacuum." My cabinets are proof positive of that. I have a crazy amount of cabinet space here. Don't be envious. It just provides more places for things to accumulate. As I've emptied, we've taken boxes of books to the library for their ongoing book sale. There is a stack of things headed to a thrift shop. And bags of trash are already gone.

This set of cabinets was like an archaeological dig. So what did we find? In the "why" category were empty light bulb cartons and broken remote controls. There were duplicates of items that I'm sure were bought because we couldn't find the original. Because how many rolls of masking tape or flashlights does anyone need? That's all sorted out now.

But there were fun things, too.  I found a sweet crocheted baby cap that had belonged to Daddy-O. I uncovered other keepsakes, like the caricatures of our daughters that were drawn at a local festival years ago. Jessica was four. Mommy was six. The artist asked what they wanted to be when they grew up. You can see how they answered. Jessica is now an art director at her company. She knew even at four what she wanted to do.

But the real treasure was finding a ceramic chess set that I made for my father soon after I graduated from college. Remember when "doing ceramics" was a popular hobby? This was the only ceramics project I ever did. And I had wondered what happened to it. It was safely tucked away in a high cabinet.  In a box with no label. Daddy, who loved chess and woodworking even made a wooden chessboard to go with it.

He loved playing chess. He would have friends over in the evening to play. And for a long time he played with out-of-town friends by mail. He had a separate board for that game with numbered squares. In this day of instant communication and online games, it's hard to imagine that waiting a week or so between moves could possibly be any fun. Good memories were unearthed in this find.

My work isn't over, but at least I'm making progress in the decluttering game. Less stuff is the goal. Shelves aren't empty. (Before I started, they were crammed full.) But it feels like there is room to breathe now. I didn't make a "before" photo and I doubt I would have shown it to you anyway. But trust me, I'm making progress. And feeling calmer.