Does anyone else hang on to things that you KNOW you won’t ever use or need again? Why? Why do we do this?
I was cleaning out some drawers & things, and came across 3 old lap swimsuits and a few more old suits (from like, 15 years ago) that I was keeping as “back up” suits. Back up to what exactly?? A bathing suit emergency? These lap suits were stretched out beyond what I could wear, and the others were not the right size. They were very thin, almost see through. And one of them had bra cups that had accidentally gone through the dryer so they were bumpy & clumpy & just not fit to be worn anywhere. Ever. Like, ever. Not even in a swimming emergency.
But it made me think about why… Why am I keeping this? I think there’s a continuum of ideas that start on the “keep everything” side and move toward the “get rid of everything!” side. I’m usually on the get-rid-of-it side, but for some reason I want to keep these old suits. Maybe because they are tied to memories of when I was in my 20s (not the greatest part of my life, why do I want to hang on to that??). Maybe because I’ll lose a few pounds and get back in one. Maybe because it just feels weird throwing away something that at one point had meaning, but now is junk. That transition from good to bad is powerful, even with something like a swimsuit.
And I even found a pair of shoes that were – at one time – fantastic! They were Dansko clogs. After some intense foot pain years ago, these were the only shoes that I could wear. I’ve had them forever but the soles literally have holes the size of a quarter that you can see straight through. But they are still here. Why? I don’t know! I dooooon’t knooooooooow. Not sure why I have such a strong pull with some things that aren’t really doing anything for me right now.
Maybe this post will inspire someone to get rid of the crap. Take out the trash. Let go of the things that don’t serve you anymore. Whether it’s a shoe or a jerk in your life (home, work, whatever) or a version of yourself that you’re not too happy about….get rid of that mess. I’m throwing out those old suits AND shoes right now… I’ll dig deeper later, but it’s a start and good enough for right now.
CHANDRA GREEN 