Finding Freedom From Fixtures

After recently taking a workshop with Marylee Fairbanks (http://maryleefairbanks.com/) I have decided to begin my own "24 Things" challenge (http://maryleefairbanks.com/24-things/). The rules are simple: each day for 24 days you let go of something that has been cluttering up your house, something that no longer serves you, objects that will be better suited at a yard sale, donation box, or in a trash barrel. During the 24 day release, one should only purchase necessities-- food, medical care, etc. All other material desires should be added to an ongoing list. If you are able to remember the items on your list at the end of the 24 days, then you are free to purchase them, otherwise they are likely to have been unimportant. According to Marylee, "The clutter in our house reflects the clutter in our hearts." Are we clinging to mementos of past relationships? Unwanted gifts that we were too polite to turn away? Clothes that haven't fit for years? Objects that no longer reflect who we are currently in this ever-changing body and mind of ours? Are the things we surround ourselves with keeping us rooted in the past, preventing us from blossoming into the future? In order to invite abundance into our lives, we must eliminate the unnecessary clutter that surrounds us.

Although Marylee recommends four cycles, corresponding to the four seasons, of 24 Things each year, the timing of her most recent workshop and the significance of this period in my own life could not have been better. I will be beginning my solitary 24 Things today, April 29th exactly one year after my (ex) husband told me he was moving out. In exactly 24 days I will turn 28 years old. I cannot think of a better way to mark the end of a year of transformation and to usher in another year of abundance, love, and gratitude for this life that constantly challenges and inspires me.

"One good thing to remember when clearing out is this: If you have an object that makes the past feel more important than the future then you should let it go. The past is gone. Your present is all that need be nourished." ~Marylee Fairbanks

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Day 13: Electronics

The apartment that I am living in currently came with three large cabinets. The largest one is about a foot taller than I am. My ex husband also happened to be a foot taller than me and he often piled his things in hard to reach places, knowing that I wouldn't be tempted to clean or reorganize them. The things on top of the white cabinet were piled so high that they nearly reached the ceiling in our cavernous Victorian hallway. He left everything up there when he moved out. I'd find my gaze settling on the mess of wires and boxes every time I walked from my kitchen to my living room. Eventually, I moved everything on top inside the white cabinet. The dark, rainy weather today made for a perfect opportunity to finally unpack and sort through the things I barely looked at before shoving them far into the shelves.

The city I live in offers an electronic drop off opportunity once a month (this month's is a week from today.) I will be dropping off and freeing myself from the following items: 1) a box filled with miscellaneous wires many of which I couldn't say with confidence what they would belong to 2) my first DVD player, a Christmas gift that I received as a teenager. DVD players were just coming out and I resisted letting go of my VCR and VHS tapes much like I'm currently resisting letting go of my outdated phone in favor of a touchscreen with internet and apps and whatever other new technologies people my age enjoy 3) a set of speakers that belonged to my ex husband. I can't recall ever seeing these used and have no idea if they even work 4) a Nintendo Gamecube with four games, and two controllers, also something I've never seen in use 5) two mysterious controllers that I vaguely remember plugging into my husband's laptop in Georgia to play original Nintendo Games like Mike Tyson's Punchout 6) an X-Box 360 that broke years ago 7) a broken internet router, neatly replaced to its original packaging, looking deceptively useful 8) an old home telephone 9) a telephone modem that may or may not work. 10) an old hair dryer that broke years ago.

Over the past few weeks I have noticed that most of the items I have been holding onto and am now letting go of are broken.  How wonderful it will be to eliminate all of these objects whose only function has been to take up space and to remind me constantly of the broken past.   
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