things – Stories from A Closet of Errors

As most people, I own too many things. I could, obviously, live without most of the things I have. And I have tried, once when I was moving to a new flat, I gave away most of my possessions. This was, in some way, liberating although I’m not quite sure if I was trying to set myself free or was just to lazy to take everything with me.

I often read (diagonally)the good advices on decluttering and while browsing through this “Letting Go of Sentimental Objects Is Hard. Here’s How to Start.”, this caught my attention:

He eventually realized that he was clinging to things that reminded him of people, places and experiences from his past.

“I wanted to make room for my future,”

From house move to house move I always kept steam trunks, books, photos, my grandmother’s wedding blouse and her dresses, the cake figurine of her wedding (1949) cake my great aunt wedding dress, my grandfather”s camera and photometer, birthday cards, note written by friends, sketches made by friends who have, unfortunately, died, theatre and concert tickets, my journals, my first pair of shoes bronzed in South Africa, teddy bears, notebooks and pens and pencils.

Learning to love differently is hard,
love with the hands wide open

I suppose this answers the question, What are three objects you couldn’t live without? I just can’t bring them down to three.

I know “our memories live inside us, not in our things” but I still feel there’s a beautiful thread connecting everything I’ve kept to my personal history, relationships, and creative life. They are tangible links to my ancestry.

I’ve kept things that embody memory, relationship, and meaning rather than items of mere convenience or fleeting value. For some, they’re probably just clutter anyway. For me, these objects help tell the story of who I am and of the life of those who came before me. I have a hard time imagining a future without room for the past.