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April 26, 2011

Who Am I Without My Stuff? Part 1: Decluttering Your Life

Written and photographed by Ursula Jorch

In the process of selling my house, I came upon the idea of going mobile.  Rather than buying another house, or renting for a time, I decided to do what I’ve yearned to do and that is travel.  I decided to travel to different places and stay for a month or two, then move on to the next place.

And that is exactly what I have done.  My soul rocks every time I think of it!

In order to prepare for this radical move, I went through the process of getting rid of stuff.

I’ve never been a ‘stuff’ person, not really into shopping, not a collector of doo-dads. I’ve been a lover of streamlined, clean and open space.

But I was in this last house for 12 years, and stuff does accumulate, especially when your strategy for dealing with things you don’t know what to do with is, I’ll just put that down in the basement until I decide!  Turns out, you end up with a basement full of indecision.

Going through this process was and continues to be an extraordinary experience.  Issues and memories of the past, revisiting people and events, that has been my journey.  It has included coming to peace with my past.

And as I got rid of more and more stuff, I came to realize how much of who I am is defined by the stuff that I own.

Not just to the outside world, but to myself as well.  I own original art, so I am an art-lover.  I own contemporary furniture, so I am a sophisticated urbanite (or at least I tell myself that!).  I have cool garden furniture, so I am ecologically aware.

We don’t start out being defined by our stuff.  Most of us buy stuff that is in alignment with who we are, and so our stuff is a reflection of that identity.

But over time, we change, our identities change, we grow, and yet many of us, including me, still hang on to our stuff.

The thing is, it’s a way of hanging on to the past.  It’s usually not a conscious process, but the past in the form of these things we’ve accumulated starts to drag us down, prevents us from moving forward into the present and the future.

Since I’ve just gone through this process in a huge way, I’m especially aware of how the past has kept its hold on me, partially through my stuff.  In not being conscious about it, in putting stuff into the basement for some later point when a decision is made about it, and in keeping stuff I no longer love, I’ve allowed myself to slow my own growth.

The great news about all of this is that committing to and going through the process of getting rid of stuff that no longer serves you, that doesn’t align with who you are now, and that you don’t love or need, is so accessible!

You can start on this any time.  You can start in the smallest of ways.  And as you move forward with it, you will feel the weight of past lives fall off of you like a burden you didn’t know you were carrying.

You will have freed yourself, and allowed yourself to step into who you are, right now, and in the full unfettered way that you owe to yourself, to live your true life.

So, I encourage you – pick a room, a closet, or a shelf, and start today.  It’s an amazing way to liberate the true you!

Part 2 is next: how to make this process as easy and simple for yourself as possible.

 

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Filed under: Change, Personal Growth 

Comments

9 Comments on Who Am I Without My Stuff? Part 1: Decluttering Your Life

  1. Olga Degtyareva (Peaceful Productivity)No Gravatar on Tue, 26th Apr 2011 3:07 pm

    2. Love love love this post, Ursula! Have been recently focusing on conscious decluttering and enjoy the liberating feeling that comes with it. Will be waiting for the part 2!

    [Reply]

    Ursula JorchNo Gravatar Reply:
    April 26th, 2011 at 3:14 pm

    Yay for you, Olga! Decluttering releases so much – you’ll have way more energy!

    [Reply]

  2. Elaine BaileyNo Gravatar on Tue, 26th Apr 2011 4:49 pm

    3. I love this post Ursula – As you know, I’m in the process of some major de-cluttering right now and I’m releasing so much from my past and creating some awesome new energy! I’m feeling freedom and letting go as I continue to evolve and grow! It’s regenerating my soul.

    I guess I’ve been a kind of traveling nomad too over these last two years – always having a suitcase packed and flying off somewhere. I love what you’re doing, my friend.

    See you next week!

    ;-)

    [Reply]

    Ursula JorchNo Gravatar Reply:
    April 27th, 2011 at 1:31 pm

    Thanks Elaine! Wonderful to see you doing so much to grow!

    [Reply]

  3. NoreenNo Gravatar on Tue, 26th Apr 2011 6:20 pm

    4. Love this, Ursula!

    [Reply]

    Ursula JorchNo Gravatar Reply:
    April 27th, 2011 at 1:31 pm

    Thanks Noreen!

    [Reply]

  4. Who Am I Without My Stuff? Part 2: How to Declutter Your Life | Ursula Jorch | The Intentional Nomad on Thu, 28th Apr 2011 7:34 am

    5. [...] 2011 « Who Am I Without My Stuff? Part 1: Decluttering Your Life April 28, [...]

  5. Rachelle AnslynNo Gravatar on Thu, 28th Apr 2011 10:18 am

    6. I love this Ursula! I’m lucky to live with a master of simplification… keeps me on my toes. I totally get the indecision part and love your realizations! Look forward to your next post too :)

    [Reply]

    Ursula JorchNo Gravatar Reply:
    April 28th, 2011 at 2:05 pm

    Thanks Rachelle! Those masters of simplification do help in this process, don’t they? :)

    [Reply]

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