RePurposing

We Recycle bottles, cans, grocery bags, etc. But more than that, we repurpose! (That's the new B.S. word for recycle.) I take great pride in turning trash to treasure. But now, I have to donate... give away... release... many items that I can no longer find purpose (or space) for.

In my new MUCH smaller home, I have had to Kaizen-ize. I'm making myself nuts trying to find a place for everything, leaning our items down to the necessary and practical. The difficulty is having to let go of the stuff I love.

Like my Thinking Chair.

It has to go. I am sad about the fact that it fits absolutely NO WHERE in our townhome. It's big and wide and deep and comfy. But it really doesn't fit anywhere. I need to let someone else enjoy reading their favorite books wrapped up in a blanket, enveloped in the cushions of that chair.

And my books.

Where am I supposed to put all the books? I could place them throughout the house on shelves, but with such a small space, it would look cluttered and messy. I suppose I could wrap each individual book in matching paper so that it looks all Pottery Barn. I could. But that would be an extravagant waste of time. Way more work than donating them to a women's home.

My Husband-ish is having a tough time letting go of stuff, too. He has a 1974 Porsche 914. He has TWO, actually. One is his daily driver; spunky yellow, zippy around a corner and really cute. The other one... well, it's pukey green, in a million pieces and rusting away. Definitely not cute. Guess which one he can't let go of... He talks about all the things he'll do to it , how it will turn out, where he'll race it. I wonder if I'll ever see It run. But then he wonders why I've hung on to That Chair for so long.

There are things in all of our lives that we as individuals have a tough time letting go of. Not because of the value it holds to this world, but because we identify it with a time in our life or feelings of security. When we relate to things by the feelings they spark, it's as though we are tossing the emotions aside. But IT'S JUST STUFF. Right? Why then is it so difficult to let someone else repurpose those things right on out the door?

It's not easy, but eventually we all benefit from letting go.

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Happy Earth Day and Happy Repurposing!

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