We have set the dates for our first garage sale of the season. May19-21. Now comes the hard part--actually getting ready for those days. Even though we have had successful garage sales the last two summers, the second floor of our garage remains full of treasures from our past. Not only are there leftovers from past sales, but I keep adding to the piles.
I am ready--more than ready--to let go of so much of what we enjoyed at one time. In this upcoming sale I hope to sell stacks of colorful vintage picnic and lunch tins and neatly folded and ironed bright and playful tablecloths from the 40's and 50's. And more. It is time. No regrets. |
| 4th of July at Sweetwater Farm |
In a way getting ready for a garage sale is like doing a Life Review. I recall a small town antique mall where we found the perfect addition to a collection or I remember decorating for the 4th of July with red, white, and blue tablecloths. I think about all the fall motif tablecloths I collected to use on the tables at the rehearsal dinner for our son and daughter-in-love. Or what about the day we moved into our house in Madison and our daughter arranged piece after piece of Ohio pottery on top of the kitchen cupboards? The memories come pouring forth--and believe me, I have more than enough pitchers to hold those memories!
Each memory is attached to a particular home and space, as well as a time of my life. And one memory leads to another. Story by story I move through the years. I note the joys, but the sorrows are there too, and should not be ignored, although with some it is time to mark "For Sale" and add to the garage sale.
Life Review helps me see and understand who I was, what gave me pleasure and how I created home. Life Review, also, helps me prepare for whatever stage I am in now. I ask myself what do I most want to bring with me into these current days? What matters most?
Part of growing into our wisdom years is creating both exterior and interior space --the kind that can come from doing a Life Review and having a garage sale!
An Invitation
Where are you in your Life Review process and what are you learning? I would love to know.
You are so brave! I'm not a collector of larger things. I mostly collect pictures, letters, documents with which I have created a mosaic of my life. I am sloooowly, slowly sorting and discarding. I have the courage to ask, "Who will care about these things after I am gone?" As you say, it's important to create inner and outer space, so that's what I am working on. Love this post!
ReplyDeleteBrave or desperate? Your question to yourself about the meaning for others of what you have gathered is a good one--and as I confront the bins of journals I have written over the years, I wonder about that myself. The other day I went through two journals from my spiritual direction training. My first inclination was to toss them, but I left them on my desk overnight. The next morning I realized there was material in there I want available for the book I am writing. I tore out those pages and filed them in my writing notebooks --and then tossed the rest. Felt just right. Good luck with your process.
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