Out With The Old, Spring Cleaning For The Soul.
As of late, i’ve been overcome by an urge to drive a truck load of my stuff to the local donation center.
I’m sure you get it. It’s usually this time of year after a Winter of extra gathering that we’re panicked by the lifetime of possessions we’ve collected thus far. Items we think we need, or can’t refuse, gifts and hand-me-downs or hand-me-overs we feel we should keep.
We gather for a variety of reasons, comfort, reward, status, memento… Usually at the time of acquisition these items feel necessary and meaningful, so we keep them. Then some time passes, and we of course keep keeping them, as well as continuing to add to our 'collection'.
For all the many reasons we have to acquire these items, we have another set of reasons that convince us to hold on to them. They remind us of a time, place or person that was special, they seem too valuable to just discard or we are quite sure that they will come in handy for the perfect project sometime in the future. So we stow them, stash them etc., when neither the past nor the future is a part of our life today.
All these many things add clutter to our worlds and take up our space and energy. Over time the process involved in clearing the piles can feel insurmountable. Clearly we are holding on to stuff for too long. Long after they've served their purpose, Long after we have an iota of a need for them.
Regrettably this is true, not just of our external stuff but of our internal stuff as well, as it is, that our hearts and our minds too, tend to hold on to 'possessions'. We possess ideas, beliefs, assumptions and values which at one time in our lives felt helpful or even necessary.
Unlike the overstuffed closet that in time we can’t ignore, without notice, we keep filing up our hearts, minds and bodies with the burden of holding on to these ‘items’ for whenever next we might need them.
Naturally at some point, we run out of room and have no space for new beliefs or fresh ideas that may suit the day. So for each and every new experience we are left to pick among our old outdated thoughts and beliefs from which to make sometimes life changing decisions.
It is pretty easy to see how this does not benefit us. Usually we don’t even notice that our internal space is cramped for breathing room or that our old beliefs and values are holding us back in some unseen way. And, if we do notice, we don’t know where to begin to start the freeing up of heart and mind.
Fortunately, the change of season can help to break us from the everyday trance of collecting and move us to clear stuff out! This can sometimes start on a whim, but then takes time, intention and perseverance to really dig in. It takes serious momentum to get past the internal dialogue about each and every 'possesion'. Funny thing is, it is the story or the internal dialogue that actually possesses us.
The spark of the season and the felt sense of craving change catches me this spring, as I now see how the process of 'cleaning house' feels so like coaching to me.
Getting a handle on our external possessions around us helps us to cool our jets on the inside and the reverse is also true. Sorting and resetting our beliefs on the inside, helps us to gracefully and effectively move through our everyday world on the outside.
To open up to the awareness of internal clutter and then find the inspiration to sort and clear, is truly the kind of 'housekeeping' that will change your life. It is a process that requires thoughtful energy and time, in which to give proper thanks to the old 'possessions', beliefs and ideas that have served us in the past, but do not in the present. In this way we can graciously and thoroughly let them go, thereby making way for freedom and a new life wish.
If you're needing a little inspration to clear out your external stuff, check out the popular book “The Life Changing Magic Of Tidying Up” by Marie Kondo. it put a skip in my step. If you’re wishing for the support and inspiration to declutter on the inside, “decide it’s your time” and check out some coaching this spring!
~Michele