Do you remember cleaning your room when you were a kid?
Tidiness has never been my strong suit. My mother would have to cry, yell, command, threaten, bribe and beg before I would actually do anything about the disorganization of my room. By the time I finally got around to it, the small task I had initially been asked to tidy would have proliferated into a gargantuan fusion of toys, clothing, papers, and books large enough to devour a medium-sized child. Because of my procrastination, the mess would have evolved from a ten-minute-tidy to a weekend-consuming, decluttering event worthy of commercial sponsors that had to be supervised by a parent to enforce the safety precautions necessary to avoid disappearance into the abyss of chaos, and to prevent the cleaner (me) from dissolving in tears of despair.
I hated those weekends with a passion. I wasn't allowed out with my friends or to watch movies or TV because my mother knew that would lead to further procrastination. My focus was cleaning my room - the whole of it, and usually my closet was the biggest offender. I'm certain that over the years my mom must have thrown out entire garbage bags of toys, crafts, knick knacks, etc. (a.k.a. junk) without me having any idea. A full cleansweep of my room usually took hours (and hours and hours) and produced bags of garbage, recycling, and clothing that I hadn't seen in ages.
Of the three children in my family, I am by far the one with the greatest aptitude for collecting stuff. I wouldn't describe myself as a hoarder, but I definitely have tendencies in that direction sometimes. The problems start when I'm trying to purge unnecessary items. When it comes down to deciding whether or not to throw something out or give it away, my sister or brother will toss it without second thoughts. I, however, wonder: "What if I ever do need this? If (insert far-fetched scenario on par with the imminent apocalypse heralded by baby unicorns and tiny fire-breathing dragons) happens, then I will regret throwing it away and will have to buy a new one." These internal dilemmas occur frequently and cause concern when storage space < stuff I want to keep, which is almost always. (Please pause for a minute to note that I have finally mastered the greater-than/less-than crap we learned in math).
I'm trying to remember where I was going with this ... Oh! Right! I started cleaning my room yesterday! I have been whining and complaining (to myself ... and a few other people) about what a mess it is. I promised myself at the beginning of the summer that as soon as my spring course ended (May 27th) that I would do a full clean, declutter and organization of my room because I knew that the minute fall classes start, I will have eight months worth of excuses as to why I don't have time. I finally started yesterday, August 2. See what I mean about procrastinating?
A few weeks ago I started collecting clothing I don't wear anymore to give away and I ended up with a blue recycling bag full. Yesterday I found an entire garbage bag full of random junk to be thrown out and another half bag full of recycling (mostly papers, and a little cardboard). But my room is still full of stuff! I could easily throw away another few bags of trash and donate several more bags of clothes and my room would still announce, with fanfare, that I am a very lucky girl from an upper-middle class family in North America.
It does serve as a reminder, however, of just how lucky I am. How fortunate that my aversion to throwing things away is a vice that I have time to be annoyed by. Most of the world survives on an income that is far less than what you could net from selling stuff from only my room. Humbling. Very humbling.
My room still has a long way to go. I have a giant box of CDs that have been living at the end of my bed since we moved (in July 2008) that I need to burn onto my computer and then give away. I should probably donate at least another bag of clothing and garbage another bagful. It's amazing how much more peaceful my room seems when it's clean. It's as if the space heaves a sigh of relief. It will be a good start to what I'm determined will be an awesome school year!
Song of the day: Take It From Me by The Weepies
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