Out with the Old

Spring fever is finally raising temperatures, and in my old age I'm finally wising up to the idea of doing the indoor spring cleaning well before the sun shines through the April showers and beckons me outside. The part of our house that needs the most attention is the basement. Like the junk drawer in the kitchen, the basement has become the catch-all for everything that doesn't have a permanent home, for things I only need seasonally, and for items that hold a some sentimental value. As I'm cleaning out the basement, I'm realizing that I have been hanging onto things that might have a use in the future. Having seen clips on TV about hoarders, I'm feeling a little grimy because I have that tendency. My house is not awash with clutter, but the basement, if I leave it untouched and continue my basement-stash-routine, will be.

At first glance, the basement is too messy to know where to begin. Years ago, a wise woman (Hi, mom!)told me that if it takes 12 months to make the mess, it will take 12 days to clean it up. Here's hoping! I've put on my planner that my daughters and I will spend an hour a day in the basement until it's finished. If we can meet that goal, we are going out to dinner!

I prepared myself for the daily chore of cleaning. What I realized that I wasn't prepared for was the emotional toll the 'trash' part would have on me. I'm going through the boxes, sorting the old clothes, throwing out the trash, taking pictures of old art projects that are too big to keep and selling the good stuff on ebay. But the emotional part comes at me unexpectedly when a favorite outfit from the girls toddler days is unearthed, when all the Mother's Day crafts are rediscovered, and when random wedding pictures surface in the strangest of places (I found a picture of my sister and I on my wedding day in a box filled will stuffed animals.)

What to do with all the treasures? My youngest daughter was upset when I suggested that we throw out the shoebox guitar she made. My middle daughter was overly exuberant in the tossing out of torn costumes that marked long summer days of tea parties and fairy tales. I realized that I have put too much importance in things. That's why I write and take so many pictures. I'm trying to capture the moment because I don't want to forget the memory.

There is also a part of me that wants to hang on to everything in case someone else needs it. Lord knows I like to be helpful. So there is also a box (ok, seven boxes) of clothing, toys, books, lamps, sheets, blankets, and dishes that I will hang onto for someone else. I've also put the year 2015 on those boxes. If I haven't given them away from January of 2015, I will take the boxes to Volunteers of America.

The clutter of keeping too many things not only makes my basement messy, it clutters my heart. Purging is never a pleasant experience, but it is certainly necessary. And so I'm saying farewell to that which is now too old, too tattered and too silly to keep and hoping that in the time I'm spending with my children on this cleaning project, they don't find me too tattered and worn and toss me out too!