So hard to let go of "stuff"

[debidoo]

I donated a huge roll top desk yesterday to hospice resale shop and it kind of made me sad.  Maybe because my husband and I bought it and he is deceased.  I don't know it was a neat desk but so huge it overwhelmed every room it was put in.  Oh well move on and forward. I keep telling myself it's just stuff and you can't take it with you.

[nannycoe1]

I have a few items that have sentimental valur that I can't part with either

[linderlizzie]

My kids keep telling me to get rid of stuff. It's harder than they think it is. Just wait until they become aging parents. 

I did have a beautiful rolltop desk that burned during my house fire. The bottom drawer of it still contained my home insurance policy even though the rest of the room was destroyed and the desk was essentially ruined. It was some kind of special feature that the desk had. I was sure glad it did!

But even though I was happy for that, the insurance company investigated me for months thinking I had started my own fire to get the insurance money, which was negligible. It does sound fishy to me too, since the firemen took me in the house immediately after the fire was out and I went right to it, but it was a miracle.

[countrygirl12]

That makes sense.  Even if it is just something you have had for a long time.  I think people do get an attachment to things.  And personally I don't judge people for that.  It makes a difference if you give somebody something if they really appreciate it.  Or if it is just like "ehh" and they don't seem to really care.  I have things that belonged to family that have died and it would hurt me to give it away.

[countrygirl12]

My kids keep telling me to get rid of stuff. It's harder than they think it is. Just wait until they become aging parents. 

I did have a beautiful rolltop desk that burned during my house fire. The bottom drawer of it still contained my home insurance policy even though the rest of the room was destroyed and the desk was essentially ruined. It was some kind of special feature that the desk had. I was sure glad it did!

But even though I was happy for that, the insurance company investigated me for months thinking I had started my own fire to get the insurance money, which was negligible. It does sound fishy to me too, since the firemen took me in the house immediately after the fire was out and I went right to it, but it was a miracle.

What is fishy?  That you knew where the insurance policy was?  I do not know that I have an "insurance policy".  It is online.  I have where I paid the bill for the year.  It is not fishy that you know where that is or that you went straight to something that you would need.  I remember you talking about that before.  It is horrible that you pay premiums for years and then when you need the ins they want to investigate YOU and act like YOU are a criminal.

[jkhanson]

I donated a huge roll top desk yesterday to hospice resale shop and it kind of made me sad.  Maybe because my husband and I bought it and he is deceased.  I don't know it was a neat desk but so huge it overwhelmed every room it was put in.  Oh well move on and forward. I keep telling myself it's just stuff and you can't take it with you.

We down-sized earlier this year.  As I went room to room, I took pictures of items that I knew I couldn't move with us and offered them to our 4 kids.  I asked the kids to answer Yes or No for each item.  Items went to whichever child asked for it.  If there was an item more than one of them wanted, they decided amongst themselves.
Items that no one wanted, we gave away to Donation Centers.

[UGetPaid]

My kids keep telling me to get rid of stuff. It's harder than they think it is. Just wait until they become aging parents. 

While it is hard to give away things with sentimental value, it is also hard to clean out the house of a newly deceased parent who kept everything.  Things are stuff - it's the people and the relationships that matter.


There are a lot of things that I have that mean something special to me, but I know that if I die and my kids have to deal with them - they would not care anything about many of my things because they don't mean the same thing to them as to me.  That's not an insult or disrespectful to my memory - it is just a matter of perspective.


That does not make it any easier to let go of things and I am not in the least saying that it is silly to hold on to things that mean something special for you. Despite what I said above, some things still do hold sentimental value.

[alice44]

It's hard to get rid of some stuff.  I am in the process of getting rid of stuff and it feels good.  It is easier for me than it is for my husband.  He says "we might need it someday"  I can't stand the clutter 

[sfreeman8]

I have 2 boys. They aren't interested in anything. I have all my mom's stuff, her furniture and all that she kept of sentimental value of HER mother. I started to collect things to sell but my camera died so I can't take photos of them and that kinda ruined my whole schedule. I did get upset when my son moved into mom's trailer when she moved in with us. They built a shed and moved all her stuff into it BUT never put a door on it so rain and snow got in there. Ruined her "shoe closet" and all her shoes (and they were great and my size, too, and used to borrow them) and her brass bed. I was so upset over that!

The worse thing of all was my stuff. After 28 years, I still haven't found my canning stuff in our shed. When we were building this home, we borrowed a trailer from hubby's job and he paid a friend to move all our stuff in there until hubby built a shed, then moved the stuff in there. I was working full time and a part time job brick and mortar so it would be dark by the time I got home.  I had a kitchen Aid mixer with blender, food processor, and another attachment that I wanted in the house immediately. Never happened.  They broke the glass on two doll hand made doll cabinets that held my 8" dolls I received for Christmas when I was 8 or 9 yo and since they never enclosed the area between roof and shed, birds and mice got in and made nests on my books and my dolls. I kept asking for hubby to bring them down immediately, but he didn't and I couldn't reach the shelf they were on so they went in the garbage.

I have come to the conclusion that men can't hear a wife's requests unless they are nagged. I was told I nag him too much even though I ask once, wait, and ask a month later. He's always so busy and forgets. I understand because he needs to do his work outside and around the house but he also has to do my work, too, since there's a lot I can no longer do. So I try to behave. 

I should just have a company come and clean out and sell everything for me. Hubby says if we would have a yard sale and put a $1 tag on everything, I'd make a lot of money. I'm in no condition to do that and he wouldn't be around for it. Sorry, didn't mean to turn this into a book. Guess I feel like yaking a lot today. 

[PGS28]

That's true, but purging is very relieving and cleansing.

[PGS28]

You don't have to; there's nothing wrong with holding onto sentimental items.

I have a few items that have sentimental valur that I can't part with either

[metsrock69]

I have some stuff that if I can't sell it online, I donate it to the local charity store so I can get it out of the house. I got rid of a lot of things over the years

[sherryinutah]

I love downsizing because I'm a minimalist but it is a part time job.  There's always something I can throw away, donate or sell.

[plennis]

I have been cleaning out and getting rid of things for about 2 years now, I am doing my house and my parents home.  It is amazing all the stuff that you accumulate over time.   The Veterans sure appreciate us, I give most of the stuff to them, because they will come and pick it up.  We also clean out homes for people who are deceased or downsizing and make quit a bit of money selling the stuff.   Some stuff though is sentimental and I just can not part with yet.

[debidoo]

I so appreciate all the responses to this post - everyone's input was so valuable.  It is amazing how much everyone understands or has a different or good way of looking at things. Thanks again you guys are awesome.