“Stuff” by Lori Clounie

This winter I spent many days going through closets and rooms trying to purge unwanted material things.

What I found was keeping things had more to do with my “heart” than my “need.”

I was amazed at the collection of “sentimental” items I had stored away over the years.  My children’s toys, their tiny faded shoes; my mothers things that at one time seemed my only link to “holding on” to her once she passed away and my favorite crazy hoarding moment, the dress I was wearing when my husband first saw me over 30 years ago (he loved that dress, that moment … and well, yes, silly as it seems, I still have it).

Over and over this verse kept pounding away in my brain,

Matthew 6:19-21  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

In a fun moment I wrote this short little poem ….. hoping you can relate!

“Stuff”
Candles and vases, baskets and kettles,
Flowers, like roses with soft velvet petals.
Pictures and memories stored wrapped in a box, a brown paper sack in the corner with rocks.
I’m sifting and purging along as I go, shifting the boxes from high down to low.
Why would I save this old torn up smock? And what should I do with all of these socks?
I pull and I tug and I reach towards the sky, I look all around me and let out a sigh.
Digging in deeper and wanting to shout, I’ve boxed myself in, there’s no clear way out.
And just as I’m sinking and ready to quit, I settle back into my chair and I sit.
My eyes start to sparkle and tear up just so, suddenly I know why I couldn’t let it go.
The floodgates are open and my heart turns to mush.
As it all comes back swiftly, the room is a hush.
So much of my history, my heart burst within.
How do I part and where to begin?
A subtle soft whisper is slight in my ear, reminding me kindly it’s better to share!
So I start up again and sift left and sift right, mindful of others with all of my might.
I box and I bag and I cinch it up tight and before I know it, it is already night.
So next time I walk through the store with my cart
I’ll think less of myself and think more with my heart.