Escape from the black hole

This week I found a black hole in my bedroom.  I had an idea it was there but figured if I ignored it, it would go away.  But I have realized it was not going to go away without some work so I finally bit the bullet and dove into the black hole with my only goal being to come out alive.

What is a black hole you might ask?  According to Google it is a region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation can escape.  I have a slightly less wordy term for it - my closet.

My closet is this horrible place in my room that I just like to forget exists.  My life changed when I had to stop working.  I no longer use the business clothes that were the staple of my wardrobe for so many years.  Now I wear animal friendly clothing (pants and t-shirts that are sturdy and easily washed) since I never know when I might be dealing with a suddenly messy kitten or getting unwanted medication spat back at me.

I am pretty happy with where my life is now and do not miss dressing up to go to an office every day.  But for some reason, all these clothes are still hanging out in my closet.  Why I do not know.  Terms like "Someday", or "Just in cast" come to mind but that still does not justify keeping clothes I do not wear.  I knew in my mind that there was a lot of emotion behind hanging on to these "work" clothes.  No one wants to be told in their early 30s that they can no longer work and are "disabled".  It is a huge hit to your self-esteem since we live in a society that judges people not by who they are, but by what they do.

To be ready to let go of the old work clothes I had to come to a few realizations:
1.  I like who I am.
2.  I love what I do as an animal foster parent and shelter volunteer.
3. Even if someone waved a magic wand and cured all my health problems, I would not want to go back to the person I was when I had to stop working.
4.  I am not a big fan of shopping, but if I suddenly need dressy work clothes again, I was going to want to go out and get new ones.
5.  Most importantly, there are people out there who not only want, but NEED the dressy clothes that are just gathering dust in my closet.

So it was time to dive in, clean out, and send them on to where they would be appreciated - which I did.  It took a few different decluttering sessions and some hard looks at what I would wear and what I WISH I could wear.  And I did hang on to one or two things purely for sentimental value.  But I am thrilled to say that I now have three big trash bags with "work" clothes ready to be passed on to women who want them and more importantly, will USE them.

So now what?  What do I do with these bags?  Well if you are like me, they tend to sit around the house getting in the way while you find a place to donate them to and then actually remember to take them there.  Which means they sit for months and months.  NOT HAPPENING!

I was determined it was going to be different this time.  And it seems fate was on my side because in the mail that same week was a postcard from the New England Epilepsy Foundation saying they were doing a donation pickup in my area this coming week and explaining how to schedule the truck to stop at my house.

Wait...someone who was going to be in the area the same week I wanted to get rid of stuff?  And who would pick the stuff up?  And to benefit a cause I support?  (My nephew is Epileptic).  Sounds like a match made in heaven to me.  I jumped on the computer, went to their website and added our house to their scheduled pick up route for Thursday.  Now all I have to do is put the bags out by 7AM that morning and they will take it away.  I love it!

So if you have a black hole in your house, get ready to tackle it.  Do it in short 15 minute sessions and you will make progress.  And if you are having trouble getting motivated, schedule a charitable organization to come to your house for a pick up - just make sure that pick up date is a few weeks away.  Knowing that someone will be showing up expecting there to be bag to pick up is a great motivator.  My three bags of unwanted work clothes has grown to six bags of various types of clothes from the whole family.

I am so excited to have begun the slow process of transforming my closet from a black hole into a useful storage place.  I still have a ways to go because there is more than just useless clothes clogging it up and that stuff will either have to be donated or if I really need it, find a new home outside of my closet.

For now, I am satisfied that I have cleared two very big hurdles that have always stood in the way of a clutter free house.  I have learned to let go of things that are not useful to me without guilt.  And I have learned how to get rid of it in a way that can help others.