Recently...that is for the last 49 years life has been flying by. I've been acting on that lately. There are several boxes from the garage I've gone through and lots of things have ended up in the trash. We are all here just a short time and I want to eventually park my car in my garage instead of junk. Books have been taken to the used bookstore ($20 store credit for a substantial pile of hardback books).
Old pictures and even the negatives have ended up in the rubbish box. My philosophy on keeping pictures is that they though they are capturing a time and helping me remember that time the picture itself should remind me of something more...or bring me some sort of joy. Some of the pictures I saved are of my sister's kids. Kid pictures are always great. Big boundless smiles. A lack of self awareness that creates this totally candid, "here I am" moment. Though one picture would do it I kept several obviously taken right in a row because the expressions are different, sweet, and worthwhile. It's worth keeping a picture if it brings joy.
The other day I watched a documentary on Minimalism. Not artistic minimalism or architectural minimalism. It was more about having less stuff and better stuff. Stuff that you need, stuff that makes you happy. It was about buying quality stuff instead of throwaway stuff. I've got a lot of throwing away to do. My life will be short no matter how much longer I live. My goal is July 4th, 2076 the anniversary of our nation. I'd be 107 yrs old. I doubt I'll get there, but even if I do it's still just a short time. I don't want my kids to spend months going through things. At the same time I don't want them throwing my stuff out without going through them. I hope the stuff I have retained brings back memories for them as well.
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