Yesterday I hastily made myself a sandwich, yanking food out of the fridge, rummaging for utensils in a crowded drawer, throwing my garbage toward the trash can...and then I stopped, looked contemplatively at the knife I had just used, thanked it, then carefully and gently washed it and placed it in the dry rack before resuming my mad rush through the day.
Thank you Marie Kondo for that moment. I haven’t even read your book yet.
This summer someone recommended that I check out “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese art of decluttering and organizing”. Doesn’t seem like hot summer reading material, does it, yet the book had FIFTY holds on 4 copies at my local library. So I did some digging and found an excerpt online (Chapter 4... http://tidyingup.com/excerpt), which maybe I shouldn’t have because now I feel I feel I might need to BUY this book.
...ironically...since one of its main topics is about getting rid of things.
So why am I mentioning this on a blog about photos, beauty, nature, and inspiration? What relevance could a book about cleaning possibly have here?
Well, here are some of the titles that jumped out at me when scanning the table of contents:
• Selection criterion: does it spark joy?
• Tidying is a dialogue with one’s self
• Storing socks: treat your socks and stockings with respect
• Komono (miscellaneous items): Keep things because you love them—not “just because”
• Photos: cherish who you are now
• If you’re mad at your family, your room may be the cause
• Reduce until you reach the point where something clicks
• Follow your intuition and all will be well
• Appreciate your possessions and gain strong allies
• Put your house in order and discover what you really want to do
• An attachment to the past, or anxiety about the future
• Do you greet your house?
• Your possessions want to help you
• Your living space affects your body
• How to identify what is truly precious
• Being surrounded by things that spark joy makes you happy
If you’re intrigued by how beauty, purpose, gratitude, presence, respect, and love can be a part of how you interact with the objects in your life, please check out the link above and read about Marie’s minimalist, meditative approach to organizing her house and daily routine, or read this lovely article by someone who tried out her approach:http://www.marthastewart.com/…/konmari-trendy-new-organizin….
I am certainly not advocating that everyone become a minimalist, but as I go through a period in my life where I am consciously questioning which possessions I need and what I can let go of, I am struck by the gratitude and respect that Marie shows for each item in her environment. Whether you want to purge your possessions down to nothing, or whether you want to renew your relationships with the world around you, this book brings new insight and joy into “being in your space”.
And for an opposite (yet oddly similar) approach, check out the ebook “The Life-Changing Magic of Cluttering Up: A Meditation on Meanings in Messes” by Kenneth Evans! Same concepts – more mess. :)
Thank you Marie Kondo for that moment. I haven’t even read your book yet.
This summer someone recommended that I check out “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese art of decluttering and organizing”. Doesn’t seem like hot summer reading material, does it, yet the book had FIFTY holds on 4 copies at my local library. So I did some digging and found an excerpt online (Chapter 4... http://tidyingup.com/excerpt), which maybe I shouldn’t have because now I feel I feel I might need to BUY this book.
...ironically...since one of its main topics is about getting rid of things.
So why am I mentioning this on a blog about photos, beauty, nature, and inspiration? What relevance could a book about cleaning possibly have here?
Well, here are some of the titles that jumped out at me when scanning the table of contents:
• Selection criterion: does it spark joy?
• Tidying is a dialogue with one’s self
• Storing socks: treat your socks and stockings with respect
• Komono (miscellaneous items): Keep things because you love them—not “just because”
• Photos: cherish who you are now
• If you’re mad at your family, your room may be the cause
• Reduce until you reach the point where something clicks
• Follow your intuition and all will be well
• Appreciate your possessions and gain strong allies
• Put your house in order and discover what you really want to do
• An attachment to the past, or anxiety about the future
• Do you greet your house?
• Your possessions want to help you
• Your living space affects your body
• How to identify what is truly precious
• Being surrounded by things that spark joy makes you happy
If you’re intrigued by how beauty, purpose, gratitude, presence, respect, and love can be a part of how you interact with the objects in your life, please check out the link above and read about Marie’s minimalist, meditative approach to organizing her house and daily routine, or read this lovely article by someone who tried out her approach:http://www.marthastewart.com/…/konmari-trendy-new-organizin….
I am certainly not advocating that everyone become a minimalist, but as I go through a period in my life where I am consciously questioning which possessions I need and what I can let go of, I am struck by the gratitude and respect that Marie shows for each item in her environment. Whether you want to purge your possessions down to nothing, or whether you want to renew your relationships with the world around you, this book brings new insight and joy into “being in your space”.
And for an opposite (yet oddly similar) approach, check out the ebook “The Life-Changing Magic of Cluttering Up: A Meditation on Meanings in Messes” by Kenneth Evans! Same concepts – more mess. :)
