"STUFF"

           What an overused, ambiguous term…”stuff.”  But I hear people every day mention how much “stuff” they have, they have to get rid of their “stuff,” I don’t want to get any more “stuff.”  For me, stuff means an overabundance of similar items to the point of nonuse.  I have so many pairs of earrings that it takes great effort to wear them all in a reasonable amount of time.  And there’s a big IF I ever wear them all.  Living in two places: one in the late spring, summer, and early fall and the other winter and parts of spring and fall, allows me to divide some of my “stuff” between the two locations in the hopes of using a larger percentage of the many items, thus justifying owning that much.  I have purses in both places.  Some shoes are specific to the location but some I bring back and forth.  My too many Christmas decorations are only used in the Arizona home, which is rather small.  Therefore, there are boxes and tubs of unused but very cute Christmas memorabilia.  The six foot tree remains in a box with one whole set of decorations never used. 

            Why I have more “stuff” than I can possibly use might go back to childhood.  I can name the toys: two sets of plastic animals, eight metal cars (including a Greyhound bus), six dolls, plastic and metal dishes which I used to set up a café counter in the living room.  On one trip to town with my dad who had to go to the blacksmith shop, I ended up coming home with a leather belt, two holsters, and two pot metal pop handguns.  Two play telephones rounded out my toys.  I only recall one stuffed bear.  My closet in junior and senior high did not contain too many clothes to wear, perhaps enough to wear fifteen different “outfits.”  I may have had three pairs of school shoes, one pair dressier for church, as well.  I don’t remember feeling deprived but I sure have made up for any dearth of ownership after I began my career in teaching and life as a wife and mother. 

            Living in capitalistic America with advertisements absolutely everywhere including my new pastime, Facebook, I have succumbed to the practice of mistaking “want” with “need.”  I can convince myself so easily that a sale item is a victory in frugality.  How sad!  The fact that our family income was comfortable also allowed guilt-free accumulation.  We didn’t go after large, expensive “wants” but somehow, smaller expenditures were okay and not a problem of “too-much-ism.”  I was wrong.  Many small things add up and crowd out contentment.

            Now that I’m in my sixties, I look around my summer (original family home) and see how full it is of cherished and overlooked furniture and decorations.  Instead of two favorite wall-hangings, I have twenty-two.  Of course, the ones painted by my mother-in-law are very special…to be handed down to my sons.  The others, some from exotic places my brother lived or purchased on special trips, will have less value to my descendants than to me.  Will an auction sell those items for little or nothing?  How could I possibly downsize to a two bedroom condominium; what would I give up?  My blood pressure rises at the thought.

            So, what’s to be done?  Do I add my objects to the overflowing thrift markets and garage sales?  Do I pawn (begging, really) them off on my children?  Do we have to experience what we see on the television show Hoarders? Surely our problem is not that bad!!  Professional help might work, with a price-tag.

          I wonder if there is a comforting method to reduce, slowly but surely. Holding each object to feel enjoyment for it or not is methodical but oh-so tedious and not guaranteed to work.  Logically, step one would be to stop contributing to the accumulation.  It’s like a diet from buying, whether a flea market find, the sale of a lifetime, or just a plain impulse purchase.  And I know how diets go.  Choosing not to replace clothing I’ve donated to the thrift store could help.  Concentrating on all the wonderful relationships I have, friends and, well, relatives.  Ignoring advertisements would be good.  Taking walks, having coffee with friends, reading books from the library, watching television show I’ve missed in the past…none of those lead to more “stuff.”   

I can follow the lead of my mother-in-law who gifted sets of wine glasses to her children.  I have sets of items that would make lovely gifts.  Considering the recipient would be a bit of a trick, however.  Only relatives?  Whatever the case, writing this blog is a good new beginning.  It’s time to reduce with a smile in the process.