If you need to have more energy or wanna feel lighter or just be able to breathe deeper, set aside one day to PURGE! Really Purge.
Spouse and I delve into the unfinished portion of the basement today, aka the kid’s playroom. Or so that’s what it used to be. It had become a dumping ground of sorts for all the misfits and the outdated things that didn’t seem to belong anywhere else in our home.
And one of the many items that made its way in the car on that bumpy ride to the dump was our 19 inch television that was a wedding gift from 1992. It is THE LAST item that we own from those first days together. It has seen better days. Its knobs are worn away and the buttons are stuck in “on” mode. It dates long pre-digital days and it’s had more universal remotes than I can count. The original one died prematurely. It has a burn mark on its right side from getting overheated in the moving truck to SC. It has been through 5 moves, 2 children, umpteen cable companies, and almost 18 years of marriage.
As Spouse lugged it over his shoulder and was about to throw it into that giant dumpster I found myself feeling emotional.
“Pull it together girl. You don’t get attached to STUFF.”
But despite what that inner voice tried to tell me my emotions won.
I peered over the side of that giant dumpster to give it another peek. There she lied at the very bottom of that dumpster. You’ve served us well old girl. I pulled out my camera to snap one last photo.
I reminded spouse that it was the last “thing” that we still had from our first days together.
But he corrected me.
“We still have each other.”
What could I say? He was right.
When it comes down to it televisions are just THINGS. Material possessions that we will not be taking with us when our days here end.
What really matters are our relationships with those whom we love. And the kind of person we are.
So, although it may be good-bye to our old television today, it is a hello kind of wake-up call to me. She may be gone physically, but our TV’s mission is not complete. It serves as a reminder of what is truly important in this life. It serves as a sweet reminder of priorities and enduring relationships.
And each time I look at the empty spot where she once sat I will smile. Good-bye old friend.
it's always amazing to me what we as people can create attachments to or put meaning upon. I think sometimes we look for a tangible representation of a memory, a feeling, a time in our lives.
ReplyDeleteBut your spouse is right...we are bigger than "things." The TV is gone, but what it represents lives on and on! :)
Sweet post!
ReplyDeleteI think I needed to read this post!! I could really use some purging right now!
ReplyDeleteawwww... how true, how true... :)
ReplyDeleteSweet sentiments... :-)
ReplyDeleteYour husband's response is too sweet! What a lucky lady you are to have him -- for 17 yrs, too!
ReplyDeleteYes, I love your husbands response. That was the perfect thing to say!
ReplyDeleteI so have to do this too!!! I know how freeing it can be :) WIll wait another day, though...garage sale season is among us, and will have to gear myself up to tackle that job, lol!!! Heave, sell, and maybe pay off a few bills :)
ReplyDeleteI have plenty of purging waiting to be done... I just have to buckle up and get right down to it.
ReplyDeleteSweet sentiment from the hubby. :) He is right, though. :)
It's a relief but oh so hard.
ReplyDeleteGood job Hubby, "you still have each other." So true.
Oh we did it last month, it felt so good to get read of all of the things that just took up space and no one needed!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing how we hold onto "things"? Your hubby is right... I like the idea of holding onto memories!
ReplyDeleteI'm a total packrat and it's hard for me to let some things go too -- your hubby had wise words (and thank goodness for cameras...)!
ReplyDeleteWhat a special man! He will outlast all the T.V.s. Thanks for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to give up those things from the first days of our relationships. Your man sounds good.
ReplyDeleteI know I've grown attached to plenty of things in my day as well. It can be hard to give them up, not because of the thing they are, but because of the memory they represent. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteBoy did you remind me I need to do my spring purging soon!!!! BTW, loving the music on your blog!
ReplyDeleteDawn
www.thewayiseethings.typepad.com
P.S. Don't worry about "catching up" on scrapbooking -- did you SEE the years on my pages. 2001, 2003. I don't think I'll ever catch up!
What a timely post for me to read. Every so often I feel this need to purge as well and end up having a big yard sale and taking a load or two to the dump. It's that time again at our house and your post is a terrific reminder not to worry about being attached to THINGS.
ReplyDeleteYou have an incredibly sweet man, btw.
Who knew such a little old tv could open your eyes to such an important life lesson! What a great response by the hubs!
ReplyDeleteWell the Tv might not be a keeper but that man sure is!!!
ReplyDeleteI understand attaching emotion to things and it is something that I have been working on with this journey. When my husband and I got engaged in '94, we moved in togather. I had a 26" leftover from my apartment with a girlfriend and my husband has a 15". His, however, had been dropped which had flipped the image. We had to watch it upside down but any writing would be backwards. It had three knobs. One little knob for on/off and volume and two large knobs -- remember VHF versus UHF? haha Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
:-)
I do so love this. It speaks to me on so many levels. It is just the stuff, but...it is the memory that really is everything.
ReplyDeleteI have a clock that sits on my kitchen wall. It's lovely but it wasn't crazy expensive or anything fancy. But, it was given to us as a wedding gift from a wonderful friend I have known since we were quite small. Every time I look at that clock, I think of him and I think of my husband and I's first beautiful days together as man and wife. We've been married now for 23 years and that clock has told the time in everyone of our houses, through every circumstance of our lives. A few months ago, it stopped working. I changed the battery. It still wouldn't work. I called my husband in tears and told him he had to fix it. He couldn't figure it out and said we should probably just get a new one, since it probably wasn't worth fixing. I cried even more. He took it to a clock store and it is back on the wall where it will stay, marking the days of our life together.
Beautifully written, Lish! Your hubby is right, attachment to things aren't necessary. You both have each other. :)
ReplyDeleteHope you're having a great day and feeling a little freer without all of that clutter.
Kristi, Live and Love...Out Loud
@TweetingMama
now you're making me sad for your old TV. :(
ReplyDeleteNice post. Love your blog.
ReplyDeleteSo true. If I have learned anything during my massive decluttering, it is just that. Stuff is, indeed, just stuff. And sometimes less stuff is really more.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I was sad when we got rid of our first tv too - and it was a hand me down from my grandpa who had died 6 years before we got the darn thing.
ReplyDeleteit is wonderful that you still have each other- that's the most important :)
I love to purge things we don't use. My Husband doesn't!! I tend to do most of my purging while he's at work to make it easier on him!
ReplyDeleteOh, now I love your husband! How sweet :)
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing how we hold on to "things" as memories. But you took a picture of it! I read somewhere that instead of keeping the thing, take a picture of it to remember it by. Saves a lot of space, but you can always look at it. That's what I've been doing.
So very true! People are the important things! Great post.
ReplyDeletesuchakingdom.blogspot.com
I have a lot of purging to do, but I am so very attached to a lot of things. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI've been so in the mood to do this lately! I need to set an actual day aside and focus on it though because doing it here and there a little at a time isn't getting me anywhere. It feels so good to just let go of some of those things taking up space.
ReplyDeleteI've tagged you in a meme. I hope you'll participate. More details can be found on my blog here: http://yahres.wordpress.com/2010/05/27/seven-things-that-make-me-grumpy/
Hi Lish, I just checked out your blog after seeing you are now following mine (thanks!) and I LOVE your blog! You take amazing pictures and your storytelling is very entertaining. I am happy to be following you back! This must be the time of year for purging because I'm in that mode, too! Nice to meet you!
ReplyDeleteMy husband is a big time purger...he helps me see through my emotional attachments to things too. :)
ReplyDeleteWe recently parted with our first bed. It had seen better days...but after 3 kids and 11 years of marriage, that thing was had. I got a tad sentimental about it. Not that much though because we got a King Sized bed and it feels like I'm floating on a cloud. LOL. But I can relate. And how sweet of your husband to say that. They are just things, but women are sentimental beings. Atleast you got a pic, right?
ReplyDeleteAfter 19 years of living in the same home we are thinking about moving.
ReplyDeletePURGE - oh my goodness, I have pictures in boxes that my now 23 year old made when he was two!
I know I can't take it all, but thinking of going through all the boxes and having to decide what to keep and what to trash is overwhelming to me.
This is totally something I would think!
ReplyDeleteI've given you an award on my blog: http://theperfectlyimperfectlife.blogspot.com/2010/05/versatile-blogger-award.html
I SO need to do some purging! Thanks for the inspiration girl!!!
ReplyDeleteI loved this post!
ReplyDeleteI love to read anything on purging, or decluttering, or anything.
It feels SO GOOD to get rid of stuff.
If people would just start to associate good feeling with getting rid of stuff, they'd go through their junk.
Excellently written, thank you.
Im so not alone in this so it would seem - what joy!
ReplyDeleteIm currently trying to wean my 14 year old son out of being a clutter bug, took me 5 hours to help him sort his room (he wasn't in it at the time) got rid of 3 bags full of things, he's not missed anything yet (lol) With my own stuff - I'm getting better, I get really angry at my husband when he decides its time to purge, must try and disassociate my self from inanimate objects and not get so attached. But its always the case you get rid of something and the very next day you need to use the very same thing you got rid of - its happened to me so many times - but thats another story......
Amanda
http://realityarts-creativity.blogspot.com