“Sometimes, it’s a wakeup call that pushes one to release, and sometimes it’s by choice.”
A month ago, my husband and I did a cleanse. I know, I know, your body doesn’t need a cleanse, it knows how to reset itself. Or so I’ve been told. But after months of loading up on caffeine, sugar and processed vegan foods, my/our bodies were in distress. And our whole food plant based, no potions, no powder cleanse really does the trick in freeing us from self defeating habits. However, truth be told my stomach has not been in the best of shape. You see, I’m not very good at eliminating. What?! Good God, TMI (too much information).
Watch your mind, I know what you thought I was talking about, but this article is literally about cleaning out my closets. I’ll spare you the details on eliminating in other ways. So, I belong to an accountability group. Each week we share with each other our list of “Promises” or goals for the coming week, and for each item we don’t complete, you have to pay $5.00. So after a delicious, non processed vegan meal, and a short time in front of the T.V., I announce to my husband, guess what we’re doing tonight? We’re cleaning out our coat closet. This is pretty funny, as this closet is filled with winter coats. Its supposed to hit 118 this weekend, and, I’m holding on to winter coats for those occasional east coast trips we make to visit family in the winter. And I do mean FILLED! My husband is a great sport, he moaned a bit but then jumped right in. He was thrilled with all the new found space we had. We may have only gotten rid of one winter coat, but we now had coveted floor space!
We’ve had to let go of a lot this year, and likely will have to release a lot more. We’re ready to release stuff that’s been accumulating mentally, physically and emotionally. Clearing these closets is a great metaphor for clearing the closets in my mind. What old ideas in the form of limiting beliefs, rigid thinking, fears, sorrow, and anxiety are lurking there? Old thoughts, old ideas, weight, sugar addiction, caffeine addiction, old luggage, old wires, old paintings, old clothes, old towels, old sheets, I could continue, but you get the idea.
I am sometimes envious of those who are 20, 30 years younger, they’ve embraced the minimalistic approach to life. They’ve FREED themselves of the need to fill space. For goodness sakes, I’m still looking at boxes of hanging file folders! Rubberbands – did anyone need a rubberband? I’ve got those too. I laugh when I visit my daughter and ask her or her husband for a rubberband. They scoff at me with a curious look on their faces as to why ANYONE would have rubberbands in their home?
I know I’m late to the party of releasing. There are hundreds of articles on the web of why letting go of stuff will make you happier. And while the cleanse we did last month was really difficult, I now have ZERO desire for a Chai Tea Latte, or a brownie, both previously something I was consuming fairly regularly. Sometimes, it’s a wakeup call that pushes one to release, and sometimes it’s by choice. Employing a coach, the support of an accountability group, or getting the help of a friend, it’s important to continue. If there are things that are getting in the way of feeling more energy, experiencing greater clarity and having more joy, whatever it takes, the work must be done. What’s in your closets?