Ok, so I reckon a pretty large portion of the globe would, like me, have borne witness to the Disney ‘Frozen’ phenomenon song “LET IT GO”! Yes, for those of you who know exactly what I’m talking about, I bet you just sang those three words too didn’t you!?
This song is literally EVERYWHERE, with YouTube covers galore and even some ‘singing’ goat renditions thrown into the mix too (I know, but just Google it. It’s there). But, for those of you who have no clue what I’m talking about please see, or rather listen to the link below. Firstly, a disclaimer. This isn’t in fact the original but rather my favourite version taken from one of the gazillion covers available right now.
For the record, I sincerely apologise in advance… The chorus has a way of never leaving you! Ever.
So, to get to my point. My husband and I along with our dog Rex and cat Cassie are moving house this weekend. It’s a whole new neighbourhood and a brand spanking new house, which I would be so bold as to describe as our dream home. Safe to say we are pretty much bouncing-off-the-walls-excited to pick up keys this weekend and to start unpacking our belongings into our little palace.
Now, I’m no hoarder, but sentimental I can be and in the midst of the flurry of boxes and bubble wrap that’s effectively swallowed up our entire existing household, I have found myself wondering if there are some items that I just don’t need to keep hold of as we venture to take up residence on our fresh, new patch of earth. And, strangely, in moments of decision-making and box-packing I have in total abandon caught myself singing this very song, only to say ‘see ya later’ to something that really has little consequence to my life any more. Call me crazy, call it what you will, but it’s fast become my ‘moving house anthem’ and with no word of a lie, I’ve sifted through and discarded items that otherwise ran the risk of becoming that exhausting extra car trip of baggage from the old to the new house and then some months later the unused dust collectors that really serve little to no purpose in a cupboard.
And the reason for my home-ware purge? Well, it really kinda stemmed from a quote I read the other day. It said
“have nothing in your house that you do not believe to be useful, or believe to be beautiful”.
A tall feat in reality I reckon and yet something that I definitely hope to achieve with our new home.
This quote also got me thinking a little about life. Here I am tossing out items, trinkets and articles of clothing from the past. Effectively each thing representing a memory of some kind or another. And whilst a memory, in reality they are just meaningless ‘things’ that not only would have resulted in extra baggage needing carting from one place to the next but also would have introduced old clutter which would internally alter the entire look of our new home. I think the same can really apply to our lives. There are so many ‘things’ that all of us carry with us through life. Memories and feelings of the past that perhaps have affected/hurt us that maybe we just can’t seem to let go of. The fact is though, to hold on to this stuff, that yeah, the Oprah’s and Dr Phil’s of this world already refer to as metaphorical “baggage”, will always affect the landscape of our lives going forward. It can taint our perceptions, alter our decisions and internally just store up dusty clutter that in time accumulates and just becomes heavier and heavier to cart around.
Now, this is not a ‘soap box rant’ about me being pro ‘out with the old, in with the new’. There were most certainly items in my house that I have chosen to remain sentimental about. I think of the beautiful glass bowl that I was given by my Aunt on my wedding day. Something that belonged to my late Grandmother and to her Mother before her. That, although not necessarily useful on a daily basis is representative of things held as precious to me and as a consequence adds beauty to my home. The same applies to my life. I have so many precious memories of the past/people I’ve known/experiences I’ve had, stored up over time in my heart that I will continue to keep sacred which I hope have added to the person I am today and want to become in the future.
So yeah, this weekend will come and go. Our boxes will be moved and our currently empty very new house will quickly become our home and life will go on. That said, I won’t be forgetting my ‘Let it go!’ anthem. To live in a world where we all endeavour to carry nothing in our hearts that we don’t believe to be useful or beautiful, I dare to believe that our world could look like a very different place indeed. It’s my goal to live that way. Would you be prepared to make it yours too?