Decluttering

Young netizens are agog on social media over the KonMari method, “a system of simplifying and organizing your home by getting rid of items that do not bring joy into your life.” 

This was created by Marie Kondo, a Japanese cleaning consultant, author of a best-selling book, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” and now a TV host where she discusses the same.    

She is actually saying, ”Do not hoard.” 

Hoarding, my contemporaries and I believe, is age-related. When you’re young, at the peak of your career, you like to buy and buy things as though there were no tomorrow. 

But after I had left the workplace for good and embarked on writing, I felt the absurdity of hoarding. I realized that most of the things in my closet, cabinets, and on shelves “no longer bring joy to my life.” 

Except for my books, which always bring unparalleled pleasure, I am struggling to get rid of everything else—collection of key chains, clowns, bags, blazers, jewelry, doodads, and other clutter.  

Decluttering takes time. 

We have too much “junk” stored over the years. So we do it one closet/cabinet at a time, and wonder, “Why did I waste so much money and time on these?” 

As a Sunday school facilitator for years, I have often cited this verse:  

“. . . true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.” (1 Timothy 6:6 NLT) 

But I had to reach a certain age to learn it and by grace, take it to heart.