Photo by: Sira Anamwong |
Are there any disadvantages to de-cluttering? I asked our participants.
Their response? Yes—8 No—8 Sometimes—4
Their response? Yes—8 No—8 Sometimes—4
“Our daughter is
very creative, and as a small child, she loved to do art projects; often that
required spreading out over great areas. It made for great conflict at times!
Also, too much emphasis on being de-cluttered can result in a lack of
spontaneity, and a sense of being uptight over things out of place.”
“Well . . . the
process of me de-cluttering the house is very stressful for our family. I am
surrounded by people who hoard! Seriously! My husband's office . . . I have
finally learned to just close the door and not go in there. One child collects
rocks, and every little scrap of paper with doodles must be saved. Another has
just recently joined the ranks of saving rocks, nuts (like acorns found in the
park), and papers. My small child is the only one who is not bothered when
Mommy ‘cleans’ his room. It's fine to keep things nice and tidy, but it
should not involve a Mommy meltdown once a month!"
“After a little
time goes by I think, ‘Man, I wish I wouldn't have thrown that away.’ Ha ha.”
“Getting rid of
things you might need. I don't understand people who give away their baby
clothes after every pregnancy and then have to get more at the next one. Even
with yard sale and consignment shopping, that would add up. Even aside from
that, I have gotten rid of things that I later on wish I hadn't. Some might see
that as too much attachment to ‘things,’ but I see it as careful stewardship of
my possessions.”
“As a new
missionary, we started collecting stuff because there was no Walmart around the
corner, if you needed something. Years later and things are more readily
available. I am trying to overcome that mentality. There is also the
disadvantage of getting rid of something you should have kept, but I really think
the chances are minimal. I can't really think of a significant occasion where
that has happened to us.“
“I bring in
more stuff I get in good deals, that we can use. Sometimes, I don't have a home
for that . . . so I am a hoarder/de-clutterer . . . ha!”
“You might throw out something that is actually useful,
just because you’re tired of seeing it and never using it. You know the
Murphy’s Law Corollary: If you throw away something you haven’t used in five
years, you will need it two weeks later.”
“Not that I can
find. I love de-cluttering. Well, I guess the downside would be getting
everybody onboard. Kids and hubby love to hold onto stuff.”
“I don’t see any disadvantage at all. If something is
extra, the best thing is to get rid of it. I think the hardest part about
getting rid of extras is the attachment we feel to things, even in our
imagination and fantasies about what we can really use or do with them—and then
we never do.”
“Sometimes
the things I pull out to de-clutter make their way back to the shelf or box
because it IS something we should save. My husband is my balance in this
process, because sometimes I just want to get rid of everything because the
clutter gets on my nerves! Sometimes in my de-cluttering, I forget that there
are things that are just pretty that add beauty to our lives. If you de-clutter
too much or do it without balance, then you can miss out on having lovely
things. Sometimes we don't need to be absolutely practical about everything,
but we do need to stop and ‘smell the roses.’ Having kids reminds me of this
because to them every scribble and every rock collected and every ‘present’
from friends are precious treasures that I would otherwise ‘de-clutter.’ They
remind me that some of these things are reminders of special relationships and
people in our lives, and we don't just have to de-clutter everything that
doesn't serve a practical purpose.”
“The biggest
disadvantage is that sometimes you need or miss something you got rid of. But
when you weigh the cost of rarely needing to replace something against the
peace of mind and beauty and freed-up brain cells, it’s definitely worth it.”
EDITOR’S COMMENT: Quite
a few of our survey participants agree that they sometimes later need something
they’ve given or thrown away.
______________________________________
I will never say that the disadvantages of de-cluttering outweigh the
advantages. But I think it’s at least caution-worthy that we examine the
disadvantages:
- Friction in the home
- Getting rid of things that have value to our children
- When de-cluttering actually increases the stress level in the home
- Stewardship—when over de-cluttering produces real needs later
- The house looks sterile and not homey.
- And, the biggie: getting rid of things you need soon after they’re pitched or given away
Stay tuned for one more
post about Finding Balance in De-Cluttering. It will include some recommended
reading and links. If you missed Parts 1 and 2, please scroll down to enjoy
them.
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