Some life event occurs which prompts you to downsize your
possessions in order to live more simply.
You decide to start with your adult son’s childhood-through-college
items since he moved out several years ago. Most of the items you’ve held onto have sentimental value
to you.
1. I purchased 5 Sterilite 25-quart containers to sort his items into.
2. I gathered up all
of his possessions...left behind when he moved out...from the attic, closets, and shelves.
3. I decided on his 5
categories and sorted the items into the 5 tubs: stuffed animals, and baby quilts fashioned by
family members; special toys and
children’s books; other books; school-related papers such as certificates of
achievement and report cards, etc.; and photos and his baby book.
4. The filled containers stacked
neatly into one corner of a spare closet until I delivered them to my son a few
months ago when he and his small family moved into a larger town home.
5. My minimalist son
quickly decided what to keep for his young son and himself; the rest became a
donation.
Perhaps the moral of this story is to check with your
children first as it seems they have
a much easier time of letting go of mementos that we held onto for years and
years for sentimental or other reasons.
