Rationalising Things

We are deep into the packing phase of our move to Bathurst. It feels like we’ve been packing for months! Each day, when I sit down at the end of it, I think that there can’t possibly be much more to do, then the next morning, we just keep on going. Does it never end?



the main bedroom - full of boxes
even the soft toys have been packed!

But I am grateful for this opportunity. One of the reasons the packing is taking time is we are not just packing everything, we are looking at each thing and saying “do we really need this?”. Both of us are hoarders, to a certain extent. One of us more than the other (I’m not saying who is worse, but it’s not me J), and that creates little challenges. But we will get through it. We discuss things, like rational human beings. We are rationalising things, after all.



It is said that it can be quite liberating to get rid of things that have been hanging around, taking up space. I believe that is true. In the past, I’ve had times when I’ve said to myself “just do it!!!” and when the things were gone, I felt really good.

a selection of the soft toys that have now been packed

An example (I love examples!). I have WAY too many clothes in my wardrobe, but only wear a small portion of them. Why do I have all those other clothes in there? There are so many reasons – I love the item and dream that one day I will be able to fit into it again; I wore the item to an event where I had an absolute ball, and just looking at it reminds me of that time; I honestly forgot I even had it; I think that the style will come back into fashion one day (who am I kidding?).



some of the shooter glasses, collected on my
travels around the world - these have been
given away

About 6 months or so ago, as the season was changing from winter to spring, I was getting out my warm weather clothes, and thought I’d rationalise all those other clothes while I was moving things around. I got serious about it, and before I knew it, I had several bags of stuff to go to the charity shop, and some that just went into the garbage. It felt really good to be getting rid of them. It felt like I was cleaning out the cobwebs in my mind at the same time as I was cleaning out the cobwebs in my wardrobe.

And making space for new stuff!!! Getting rid of things from the past, to make way for the future. New clothes, new thoughts!


Maggie pretending nothing is happening -
we won't "pack" her until the last minute

We are trying to do the same thing with the “stuff” in our house. Even the removalists have said that we have a lot of “stuff”.

I’m not getting rid of everything that doesn’t satisfy the “do I need it?” question, though. I’m keeping some things just because I want to. I am who I am because of what I’ve done, how I’ve thought and reacted, where I’ve been, and some of that “stuff” reminds me of that – how I came to be me. I don’t want to just give that away.

Well, that how I’m rationalising it to myself, anyway.