This week’s five minute Friday word prompt focuses on the word Stuff. I came up with this poem Stuff Invades as I’ve been tidying the house. I’ve been mentally and physically stressed this week and cleaning up stuff helps to settle my brain (as will a good night’s sleep) as I’ve kept myself fairly busy today. let’s dig in shall we?
Stuff Invades
stuff invades our lives
filling all the empty spaces
sometimes so much so that
where there should be holes
we can’t find any
do we need to do the
marie kondo approach
removing items,
seeking after that which
makes us happy?
perhaps we should remove
anything we haven’t used
for six months, or a year,
because obviously if we haven’t
used it that long, do we need it?
yet i have to wonder,
if we take either approach
how much good will be left
with or how much bad will
we have?
for instance, if we only keep
that which makes us happy, will dishes
and cutlery remain, or a
hubby’s treasures, or a son’s joys,
if i am the one making decisions?
or what about tools that are needed
but only rarely used,
or treasures of the past, rarely
viewed because they are treasures,
kept safe for special times.
so if stuff is what is seen,
maybe it is easier to deal with
what is seen, but the deeper issue
within might be tougher to solve,
it’s easier to hide.
why the stuff?
perhaps there’s an unsettled
need within to hold tight to what you
have lest it be taken away by the uncaring,
or a need to hold to memories of family
since time passes quickly.
or it’s just a matter of living,
one lives life well and over time stuff
shows up and gets added into the
overall flow of how you live because
you have the space.
should we examine our stuff?
for sure we should! i have a friend
who helps people get rid of their
stuff as they age. it can be
such a hard process to let go.
i’ve watched as parents on both
sides go through this process
each with their own mindset about
the how’s, where’s, and why’s, both
different in their viewings on their stuff
what to do
so, what do we do when those
holes appear again? what will we
fill them with or should we even
try? Should we let that emptiness sit
and somehow let them be filled with more?
not more stuff but more contentment
and satisfaction, and desire to be
one with God himself? forgiveness,
mercy, seeking to be more than
what we currently are.
I wish cleaning up stuff would help settle my brain, haha.
As far as those two approaches for getting rid of stuff, I’ve done it, and then much later regretted no longer having something I got rid of.
that has happened when I followed the six months/year rule too, and I hate it! You get rid of stuff and then discover you need it so waste money on buying it again. GROWL. 🙂
I have a pile of pilfered parts
from old worn-out appliances,
and wheel-less cars and shopping carts,
and they form strong alliances
to help me mend the stuff that’s broke,
and use it just a little longer.
Sometimes the fix looks like a joke,
but sometimes it is stronger
than what came from the factory,
all shiny-new and flawed,
and I must say it seems to me
that this is how Almighty God
sees us as we made ourself,
as He picks repair parts from the shelf.
i love the sentiment in this Andrew. Thank you
There’s no simple rule for what stuff to get rid of and what to keep, is there? I’ve been trying to hold my stuff loosely so I can make good decisions about it, but it’s still hard. Visiting (late) from FMF#9
i like that term… hold my stuff loosely. I can imagine it would be hard…but sounds like a good thing to aim for. 🙂
I have no answers! Except to hide it away in the attic – out of sight, out of mind… knowing when you need it, you’ll have some rummaging to do! 😀
for us it’s the basement. 🙂