OUT WITH THE OLD

Some of you who follow my blogs have commented on my rather protracted absence since sometime in October. I found myself going into and through a long period of exploration beginning at about that time. It was a decluttering of sorts, though one which illustrated the precept I repeat most often (and probably most annoyingly) in my decluttered creative classes: that decluttering is not, and never, just about the stuff.

That said, I have indeed released a lot of physical stuff in these last months. I sold six or seven boxes of antiques and a lovely daybed and desk that I had owned and loved for decades, but which no longer really fit my needs. I donated lots of books, linens, and other odds and ends to various good causes. I gave one friend lots of the plants and garden accessories I no longer truly want to care for and another a box of supplies for art forms I don't think I'll ever do. I did a lot of financial housecleaning as well, consolidating accounts and shredding old records and generally making space.

I also changed around most of the main living space of my house. That was a kind of decluttering, too: a releasing of the way I used to live and the spaces I used to like. The house had looked nice aesthetically, at least I thought so, but some of it just wasn't me any more. It ended up being a rather more monumental shifting-about than I had expected--I realized by the end that I had actually moved every major piece of furniture in my living and dining area and a goodly portion of the furnishings elsewhere. I reimagined colors, repurposed spaces, and just generally shook things up. It wasn't an expensive redo; almost everything in the new spaces is something I already owned except for the paint on the walls and some minor accessories, most of which I bought at thrift shops. But the overall style, the effect, and the feeling of the spaces is surprisingly different. I feel much more comfortable within this refreshed nest, and I can already feel how much more suited it is for the year of writing I plan for twenty-eleven.

Finally and most profoundly, I did a lot of inner decluttering as well. I found myself newly ready to look at my schedule, my habits, my business, my priorities, my money, my company...well, pretty much everything. I am not precisely sure where all of this re-exploration will take me, and I'm trying to be okay with that uncertainty. What I do know is that the uncertainty actually feels more authentic than some of last year's certainties and assumptions did, and that feels good. I have a sense of getting closer to that which is most important to me as the new year opens, and a sense of curiousity and excitement that is actually quite fun.

So that's what I've been doing on my autumn vacation. I look forward to connecting with all of you other decluttering creatives again through this blog and the class schedule I'm beginning to craft for the spring. And I wish you a year of decluttering, creativity, and change.