There’s a common misperception about tidying, that it is equivalent to cleaning, and that’s what scares most people away when they are told to “tidy up”, including me.
The second misperception about “tidying”, or in a better word, “declutter”, is that we have to throw away the items we once brought in – the concept unintentionally put us in denial towards “tidying” – just think about why you have all the things you own? Including me.
To be honest, I have bypassed this book many times in book shops, at airports, simply because “I think” the topic did not resonate to me. After finishing reading it over the past week, I am now drenched in the essence of tidying: the best way to find out what we really need, is to get rid of what we don’t.
Despite decision-making skills, I loved the idea of navigating our ownership patterns. Do you have more attachments in the past, or more desires for stability in the future? How we want to own, reflects how we want to live. “Attachment to the past and fears concerning the future govern not only the way we select the things we own, but represent the criteria by which we make choices in every aspect of our life.”
I moved across cities 7 times in my life so far, everytime when I have to decide which to bring and which to stay, the biggest dilemma goes “to “what if I would need it”. However the reality is, we hardly needed those things that we thought we would need “one day”, or wear the clothes we thought we might wear “one day”. And instead, it is a life changing perspective that everything will work out even if we don’t have them, there is always enough for us to handle what we need to face in life, any day.
Tidying is an opportunity to express our gratitude to our home for all it does for us. It is the place we live and breathe, and our safest shelter when we are at our worst. Everything we own is at our service, whatever we let go will come back in exactly the same amount, in better forms or formats – you can not fill with a full cup, things that are cherished, will shine.
Learning tidying is to not having to tidy.
Put our house and mind space in order, now and once, once and forever.
Life only begins after that.
a little twist. 