Clear Your Clutter Clear Your Mind

I've always kind of enjoyed cleaning and organizing. I'm not obsessive compulsive about it but I'm very affected by my surroundings and I like them to be a reflection of who I am. There are extremes on both sides, people who are neat freaks and people who are hoarders. Hoarding has become a huge issue for many people in North America and it can affect everything from relationships to your health.  

If you are lost in a sea of junk and don't know where to begin, or even if you just want to downsize a little I suggest reading "Clear Your Clutter With Feng Shui" by Karen Kingston. It's a short book and a very easy read. Here's a little taste.

"In my definition there are four categories of clutter:

* Things you do not use or love

* Things that are untidy or disorganized

* Too many things in too small a place

*Anything unfinished"

Karen says that, "your home is an outward representation of what is going on inside you, so if you are messy on the outside there is a corresponding mess of some kind on the inside too."

"Clearing your clutter allows you to begin to deal with your problems and move forward. You have to release the past to create a better tomorrow."

"Do you own your stuff or does it own you?"

"Keeping things "just in case" indicates a lack of trust in the future."

STATUS

"This is otherwise known as "keeping up with the Joneses" and serves the function of bolstering low self-esteem. Now I am not saying that everyone who lives in a grand mansion has low self-esteem. Far from it. But some people do create the trappings of  prosperity around them simply to "keep up appearances" and no amount of "stuff" will ever be enough until they tackle the deeper issues of self-worth. 

 It is so easy in the possession-orientated Western culture to lose track of who you are and why you are here. Nowhere is this more evident than in the United States, where personal status is so often defined not by who you are but by what you are worth. However, if you own things for this reason, you are buying into an illusion, for you cannot take any of it with you when you go. Your status as an eternal spirit is defined by an entirely different set of principles than those set by our transient materialistic world."

I love that quote so much! But does that mean that I have to get rid of my lip gloss collection? Just kidding... sort of.

Keep in mind there are many different kinds of clutter: physical clutter,  electronic clutter, mental clutter, emotional clutter, spiritual clutter and more. So what are you waiting for? It's time to let it all go.

Helpful Links:

Karen's website: www. spaceclearing.com

AMVETS: 1-800-795-8387 (They will come to your house, pick up your discarded stuff and make it available to people who need it."

Yoga & meditation for clearing mental clutter.