by Carol Kennedy, Timebank Media Member

I am a natural-born packrat. Have trouble getting rid of stuff. So I found myself being a relatively new member of the Media Time Bank with too many clothes in my closet. Things that used to fit me, things that used to look nice on me, things that people had given me but I had never worn … you get the idea.

So I was talking to a friend of mine, Marion Yaglinski, and I mentioned this sad state of affairs, and she suggested that she could come over and help me go through my clothes and get rid of stuff I don’t use any more. (I had already bought a book, “Unclutter Your Life in One Week” at the Pendle Hill book store, but so far, the book had only succeeded in adding to the clutter in my room, but “too many books” is another story altogether …)

Anyway, Marion came over and quickly got to work. She had me empty all my dresser drawers and closets and put everything out on the bed, then she held each item up for me to look at, one at a time, and tell her definitively whether or not I would ever wear it again. We divided everything into three piles … keep, get rid of, or “needs to be fixed”.  When I wavered and could not decide, she held me to task and sternly asked “Are you honestly going to wear it ever again?  Yes or no?”  Keeping an item for purely sentimental reasons was not an option, unless I was going to start wearing it again or hang it on the wall as a work of art.

Finally, when we were finished going through the clothes, Marion took the “give away” pile with her, and disposed of it, at an undisclosed location (I assume it was GoodWill, but I am not really sure), so that I could not change my mind.  After she left, I felt a great weight lifting off my shoulders, because I knew the clothes would find a good home and I would not have to keep worrying about the ones that no longer fit me, etc.  And with my new, leaner supply of clothing, I rediscovered things I had forgotten I had, but knew I wanted to try wearing again.  The whole process took about an one time dollar, and it was fun.  Something I had been putting off doing for a few years had been accomplished, and it felt great.

This was a great way to spend a time dollar!  I highly recommend it, if you have a friend who can help you stay focused as you unclutter your life.