I had a spiritual direction appointment this morning in the vicinity of my new temporary digs (I move to Jersey City next Wednesday to begin my Spring ministry experience). I took advantage of my proximity to the new house to drop off my stuff. Clothes, shoes, some pictures, my scrapbooking supplies for a project I'm working on and some odds and ends. I still need to bring the rest of my clothes (what I'm wearing between now & then), some books, my laptop and a few decorative items. I really like my new room - it's bright and cheerful.The thing is, now I'm sitting in my room at the Novitiate House - a room which, mind you, is now void of most of the items I feel I "need" for three months away - and it's FULL OF STUFF!!!!! I'm starting to think that my path to simplicity is going to be lifelong. Objects multiply! Then I remember the stuff I have stored in my friend's basement in Portland. I'm now understanding one conversation I overheard when I was in Florida for the Giving Voice conference last month ...
"Get rid of your stuff now. You'll be thanking yourself later after your first or second move...."
I see more purging in my future, but not just now ... In case you're wondering, the picture is some of the stuff I donated to my parish rummage sale before I entered the Novitiate (and this only represents 4 of 10+ carloads). I suppose I shouldn't be so hard on myself - at least the desire is there to live a life of simplicity!
2 comments:
I had a very similar experience over the past few weeks, while making the move from my old apartment to the one I now share with my husband. I lived in a very tiny studio -- and last year I believed (erroneously, thank God) that I had a bedbug infestation, so in the process of dealing with that I got rid of a lot of stuff. But I still had more to move than I expected! (And there's more waiting for me in my parents' basement.) Part of the problem, for me, is loving books so much... and those craft supplies do multiply, don't they?
Sometimes I think my clutter has the secret lives of breeding bunnies. Books and craft items are the worst offenders....and those cute little things nieces and nephews make for me and my daughters cute lil drawings I put in cute lil frames.....I thank the lord everyday for those lil reminders that they are loving beings....
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