i cleaned up the dining area last week. it felt so good to get it done. the table and benches had collected a large assortment of things from other places in the house and things that needed to be seen to or disposed of in some way. so nice to have it cleared and peaceful.
over the last few days i've been going through one of my email accounts and cleaning house there too. i had emails as far back as 2009. i found several that were between myself and my former bff. re-reading them was both painful and freeing. And deleting them...empowering.
i am a collector. i've always been a collector. until the age of seven i had two rooms in our house and both were full of things. (yes, i was a bit spoiled, but i was the only girl child/grandchild on both sides of the family so was gifted a lot of things.) i had oodles of toys and books. but what i really liked was collecting rocks and feathers and dirt and shells.
i'm trying to let a little bit of that collector mentality go. i swear i got my "keep it, it might come in handy later, i can use it for something" gene from my paternal grandfather. he kept EVERYTHING! i'm not that bad... not yet.
i have two (maybe it's three) storage tubs of photos, award plaques, etc., that belonged to one of my maternal great aunts. i would love to find any relatives of her husband (my great uncle) and give them the old photos (some of his parents) but i don't know if there are any left. i've had a few ideas on how to re-purpose those plaques, but haven't tried it yet.
i've lots of old things from my maternal grandparents and of course, i still collect sticks and stones, roots and bones, feathers and water too...
every so often, i become overwhelmed with despair over all my things...
who will want them, i think. what's to become of them... i have no children, nor nieces or nephews and am estranged from everyone in my family except for my mum, brother and sister-in-law. when this overwhelm happens, i tell myself that it will be fine. my brother and sis-in-law have been warned not to just throw everything out or i will haunt them (and not in a good way) for eternity.
for now, i will slowly make my way through all my possessions and clean and clear as i can. i'm thinking about putting together some paper scraps for art making and giving them away. i have so much paper that i've saved from various things to be used in my arting. so... much...
anywho...that's what i've been up to lately. how about you? are you a collector? what is your favorite thing to collect?
thanks for stopping in for a read...
love & blessings
~*~
