GON Reader Letter #1
To Anyone Reading This, Stop Acquiring Things You Don't Need
I have been reading your email messages for years and am guilty of letting them pile up in my inbox because I don't want to delete them before taking in the golden nuggets of organization they contain!
I just read the message from Louise, the woman who is overwhelmed with clutter and financial concerns, in your July 14 issue.
I just want to add some insight. We lost a very dear friend three years ago and now, her husband has lost his battle. They have two daughters.
The house needs to be cleared out for sale and since we were involved in being part-time caretakers of our friends, naturally we are trying to be helpful. The daughters cannot cope with this situation and are staying away, leaving the job to us and the executor.
Now that our friends are gone, we have been able to see the full house (three bedrooms, attic and full basement and garage) and its contents. It is heartbreaking.
On the surface, they seemed to be doing okay keeping up, but we now see the full scope of their hoarding habits and compulsive buying addictions, along with the effect debilitating diseases had on their ability to clean, vacuum, lift, file, do laundry etc.
To anyone reading this...
- Please, stop acquiring things you don't need.
- Start at the very basic level of disposing of things that are junk, like empty containers, jars, newspapers.
- Do the recycling you should be doing.
- Use up what you have. Do not buy anything for at least 6 months while you wear out and finish what you started.
- Don't buy groceries until your cabinets, refrigerator, and freezer are down to a few days' worth of food.
- Stop saving "stuff" like half-used batteries, old cough drops, wrappers from anything, and boxes for things you already put into use.
- If you are not committed to cleaning out your own mess, someone else will have to do it and they will be wracked with guilt as they toss all those things you saved into the dumpster...pictures, mementos, china, etc.
- DONATE, DONATE, DONATE! Let someone else use your excess NOW!
- Have a yard sale to recoup some cash if your stuff is worth anything.
Get started and stay with it. You might not really have all the time it takes, but it will be kinder to those you leave behind.
Thanks for reading!
-- Marie in NJ
