Decluttering - The TIDY Way

Material things in our life require our resources, whether time, money, energy or space. Are there some areas we could declutter? Find out what the TIDY method is - a Trustworthy podcast original approach - in this episode.

Resources:

Sample prayer to begin your TIDY process:

Dear Father of the Heavenly Lights, You are the giver of every good and perfect gift, and I thank you for blessing me with these material possessions. I confess that sometimes I allow myself to be ruled by my possessions. Please forgive me. You have promised that you will establish the work of our hands so I pray that as I spend time sorting and organizing these things that You would use that time to work in my life and in my heart. Give me wisdom as I make decisions about the things that I should keep and the things that no longer serve a purpose in my life. May this process bring you glory. You are Lord over my life, Amen.

Questions you can use as you go through your decisions:

1. Does this item or its upkeep/maintenance/use serve our family/personal mission statement.
2. Does it make my life easier or harder?
3. Is it sentimental?
4. Have i used it in last ___(amount of time)
5. Does it need to be in long term storage? (future plans or heirloom items)
6. Is it mine to give away/get rid of?
7. Is it still useful?
8. Is it triggering negative memories/feelings/thoughts?

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Transcript

0.760000 3.120000 Is God trustworthy?
3.120000 5.380000 Hi, I'm Sarah.
5.380000 7.220000 And I'm Mary Beth.
7.220000 9.600000 Join us as we seek to answer this question
9.600000 12.500000 through whole-hearted conversation.
12.500000 15.000000 Discover the wit and wisdom that comes
15.000000 18.600000 for being anchored in Christ and connected to one another.
18.600000 20.820000 This is trustworthy.
20.820000 23.400000 (gentle music)
23.400000 26.080000 (gentle music)
26.080000 36.880000 - Well, hello there, Mary Beth.
36.880000 38.600000 - Hello, Sarah.
38.600000 41.160000 How's your snowy winter day going?
41.160000 42.840000 - It is going fantastic.
42.840000 46.760000 I was just working on cleaning out my desk drawer
46.760000 48.640000 earlier this morning.
48.640000 51.160000 - You're getting a jump on spring cleaning?
51.160000 53.880000 - I don't necessarily think of it as spring cleaning.
53.880000 56.320000 I think of it as that natural inclination I have
56.320000 61.320000 in January to get rid of all of the excess Christmas decorations
61.320000 66.280000 and start with clean slate.
66.280000 68.480000 I'm definitely a fan of Christmas.
68.480000 71.080000 I'm definitely a fan of overdecorating.
71.080000 74.000000 However, I also look forward to that time
74.000000 76.560000 where I can kind of pack everything up
76.560000 79.640000 and start the new year out fresh and clean.
79.640000 81.600000 It helps right now that there's a little bit of snow
81.600000 82.920000 on the ground.
82.920000 85.040000 - Yeah, I think that return to normalcy
85.040000 87.200000 is something everybody kind of feels.
87.200000 89.360000 You enjoy the Christmas, you wanna hang onto it,
89.360000 92.480000 but then there comes a point where, okay,
92.480000 95.560000 we gotta move forward, we gotta move on.
95.560000 98.000000 What's going on in my house other than Christmas decorations
98.000000 99.240000 that I need to pay attention to?
99.240000 100.560000 - Yeah.
100.560000 104.440000 And I've been packing up my Christmas decorations
104.440000 108.920000 and every year I do so, I try to be more deliberate
108.920000 111.440000 about organizing and sorting them
111.440000 113.280000 and getting rid of things.
113.280000 118.360000 It's hard to get rid of things, but I've been doing that.
118.360000 121.280000 I have some things I've gotten rid of this year.
121.280000 126.360000 - I think we should talk more about things
126.360000 128.920000 and getting rid of them and cleaning them out.
128.920000 130.200000 - Oh, like decluttering.
130.200000 132.200000 - That's a great topic for a podcast episode.
132.200000 135.320000 - I think so too, let's do it.
136.760000 140.120000 - What was the last thing that you threw away?
140.120000 144.600000 - Yeah, there's definitely some of my boys ripped
144.600000 147.840000 and frayed clothing that I've gotten rid of recently
147.840000 151.960000 and then of my own things, I just had got backed up
151.960000 154.880000 on like papers, you know, just stacks of papers
154.880000 156.360000 that I need to sort through any of their file
156.360000 157.840000 or shred or toss or whatever.
157.840000 161.160000 So that was quite liberating.
161.160000 166.160000 I have issues with paper for sure, I like paper.
166.160000 167.920000 And that's my problem.
167.920000 170.760000 Yeah, so today we're talking about decluttering,
170.760000 173.280000 which is truly a first world problem, Mary Beth.
173.280000 177.880000 - Yeah, I don't think that everyone around the world
177.880000 180.680000 needs help sorting and decluttering their things.
180.680000 184.720000 So we are talking about this with the grain of salt
184.720000 188.680000 and a little humility and knowing that we have been given
188.680000 189.520000 a lot.
189.520000 191.800000 - Yes, we have been very blessed.
191.800000 195.960000 - So the way we're approaching this is looking toward
195.960000 197.040000 biblical truth.
197.040000 201.080000 God has given us dominion over the earth.
201.080000 204.520000 In Genesis, he said, let us make mankind in our image
204.520000 207.000000 and our likeness so that they may rule over the fish
207.000000 209.040000 and the sea and the birds and the sky
209.040000 211.440000 over the livestock and all the wild animals
211.440000 214.000000 and over the creatures that move along the ground.
214.000000 215.800000 And then in Psalm 8.6, it says,
215.800000 218.680000 you have made them rulers over the works of your hands.
218.680000 220.560000 You have put everything under their feet
220.560000 222.720000 and speaking of man.
222.720000 225.360000 So if everything is under our feet,
225.360000 228.640000 that means that we have dominion over our homes
228.640000 230.520000 and the things in our homes.
230.520000 233.480000 But why is it that I feel often, Mary Beth,
233.480000 236.760000 like the things that I own have dominion over me?
236.760000 241.040000 I spend a lot of time and energy and effort
241.040000 244.360000 moving things around.
244.360000 247.280000 And I don't think that that's what God had in mind
247.280000 249.120000 when He blessed me with these things.
250.040000 253.280000 So we thought that it would be good to start
253.280000 256.920000 from that point of view that God has given us dominion,
256.920000 258.920000 which according to Websters means sovereign
258.920000 260.480000 or supreme authority.
260.480000 263.800000 And we should apply that to our material possessions.
263.800000 268.520000 As someone who has not mastered the clutter in my home,
268.520000 271.640000 it's good to be reminded that this is a part of our charge
271.640000 275.040000 as humans to have dominion over the earth.
275.040000 277.960000 I will also say this episode is gonna be more
277.960000 281.160000 of something that I am attempting, not anything I have
281.160000 284.680000 mastered, not anything I'm naturally good at.
284.680000 287.640000 So let's just preface the whole discussion
287.640000 288.720000 with that understanding.
288.720000 289.800000 I'm not a pro at this.
289.800000 294.400000 Yes, we often say listeners that we are sharing with you
294.400000 296.080000 what we're struggling with in the hope
296.080000 298.760000 that it can help everyone, including us.
298.760000 303.760000 And light of that, why does clutter and decluttering matter?
303.760000 307.440000 There are three reasons that Sarah and I see.
307.440000 311.280000 The first is our biblical call to stewardship.
311.280000 313.240000 That would be for those who follow Jesus.
313.240000 317.800000 Secondly, that there are negative things that clutter brings.
317.800000 319.840000 And then finally, there are positive things
319.840000 321.440000 that come from decluttering.
321.440000 325.280000 So taking that first reason that decluttering matters
325.280000 328.280000 because of our biblical call to stewardship,
328.280000 330.880000 here's some examples from scripture to think about
330.880000 333.200000 to help frame our minds around this.
333.200000 337.120000 Matthew 16, 19 to 21, do not store up
337.120000 339.240000 for yourselves treasures on earth,
339.240000 340.960000 or moths and vermin destroy,
340.960000 343.480000 and where thieves break in and steal.
343.480000 345.760000 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
345.760000 347.920000 where moths and vermin do not destroy,
347.920000 349.720000 and where thieves do not break in and steal
349.720000 352.920000 for where your treasure is there, your heart will be also.
352.920000 356.200000 Ooh, can I share some proverbs too?
356.200000 357.360000 You always do.
357.360000 358.880000 They're always great.
358.880000 362.600000 Proverbs 21, 20, the wise store up choice food
362.600000 366.400000 and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.
367.360000 371.080000 And then, proverbs 27, 23 to 24,
371.080000 374.160000 be sure you know the condition of your flocks
374.160000 377.640000 give careful attention to your herds.
377.640000 380.040000 For riches do not endure forever,
380.040000 384.480000 and a crown is not secure for all generations.
384.480000 386.600000 Keeping those verses in mind,
386.600000 390.480000 I think the other big picture principle
390.480000 393.280000 to consider in light of stewardship
393.280000 395.480000 is that God is a God of order
395.480000 398.160000 and living with the aim of order in our homes
398.160000 399.680000 is in line with who he is
399.680000 401.400000 and how he created us to thrive,
401.400000 403.360000 not just to be, but to thrive.
403.360000 404.960000 And that is a good reminder
404.960000 407.760000 as we're going through sometimes this difficult process
407.760000 410.920000 of sorting through things that we're doing this
410.920000 415.280000 because God's design is the best way for us to live.
415.280000 417.120000 - I agree with that.
417.120000 420.320000 And I think that that sort of leads us into
420.320000 423.920000 what some of the negative effects of clutter can be.
424.960000 427.880000 When I have a cluttered mess in my home,
427.880000 431.080000 I find that my mind is often cluttered.
431.080000 432.520000 It can be difficult for me.
432.520000 434.680000 And I understand that this is the way my brain works
434.680000 435.640000 and not everyone's this way.
435.640000 438.760000 But for me, it can be difficult to even think
438.760000 442.840000 through a situation or a problem or an idea
442.840000 447.840000 that I have maybe some creative ways to approach my writing
447.840000 449.600000 when I have clutter.
449.600000 454.600000 So I think that that is not really what God wants for me.
454.600000 456.520000 The other thing I want to mention
456.520000 460.920000 is that extreme clutter can be unsanitary
460.920000 463.960000 and can cause unsafe living conditions.
463.960000 466.800000 I mentioned, and I think the previous episode
466.800000 470.560000 is sort of this clean table method of approaching a project,
470.560000 472.720000 I need to start out with a clean slate
472.720000 476.080000 before I can solve something.
476.080000 477.640000 So how am I going to do that?
477.640000 480.520000 Well, we'll get to that later, spoiler.
481.520000 486.520000 I think the way that that manifests in my brain and life
486.520000 489.440000 the negative side of things is that for me,
489.440000 490.960000 it's not that my mind is cluttered.
490.960000 494.400000 It's that I feel a heavier burden
494.400000 497.680000 of having to be responsible for more things.
497.680000 501.680000 And if I don't have a place for them,
501.680000 504.880000 the chaos kind of builds in my surroundings.
504.880000 509.880000 And there's a cost to that of both time, sometimes money,
510.000000 512.600000 there is physical and mental energy
512.600000 514.040000 that we have to expend dealing
514.040000 516.280000 with the material things in our house.
516.280000 520.000000 And so having to find a place for them,
520.000000 521.560000 knowing that most of the time a lot of this stuff
521.560000 524.480000 won't be in its rightful place in my house,
524.480000 526.640000 there's a burden there that can come.
526.640000 529.320000 You mentioned financial effects,
529.320000 532.080000 which really makes complete sense to me
532.080000 534.680000 because one of the positive effects
534.680000 539.120000 that come from organization, the opposite of clutter, right?
539.120000 542.200000 Is that we can actually sometimes be able to meet
542.200000 544.880000 our own needs and the needs of others
544.880000 548.080000 when we know what we have and where to find it.
548.080000 551.960000 There have been examples in my own life
551.960000 553.720000 and in the lives of friends.
553.720000 557.160000 I personally had an issue with baking powder.
557.160000 560.160000 One of my other friends had an issue with croutons.
560.160000 561.360000 But you know, you have a good friend
561.360000 564.160000 and you go to their house and help them clean
564.160000 565.440000 maybe even when they're not home.
565.440000 567.880000 Like that's the level of friendship we have.
567.880000 571.080000 And a one time I cleaned and I found
571.080000 573.680000 more than a few packets of croutons in her pantry.
573.680000 575.880000 She I'm sure will not mind me mentioning this
575.880000 578.560000 because we both found it extremely hilarious.
578.560000 581.920000 And for myself, I kept buying baking powder
581.920000 583.160000 'cause I didn't think I had any.
583.160000 585.200000 I mean, we're not talking about a lot of money.
585.200000 587.240000 But one person does not need six cans
587.240000 589.080000 of baking powder, three of them already open.
589.080000 591.600000 And that was my fault because I had chosen
591.600000 593.080000 my cupboard improperly.
593.080000 595.000000 I had a very high cupboard for my baking items
595.000000 596.800000 that I couldn't see to the back of.
596.800000 598.360000 And I didn't sort and organize it.
598.360000 599.480000 So there you go.
599.480000 600.960000 I do this with ranch dressing.
600.960000 601.800000 Yeah.
601.800000 603.120000 This is a total aside by the way.
603.120000 606.240000 But my vice is ranch dressing models.
606.240000 609.080000 I love it.
609.080000 610.400000 And I'm sure listeners, you're chuckling
610.400000 612.120000 because there's probably things in your life
612.120000 614.680000 that you also fall prey to in that area.
614.680000 616.040000 But anyway, moving on.
616.040000 620.280000 When we do declutter, we can definitely have,
620.280000 623.160000 for me, it's more clarity of mind.
623.160000 626.080000 It is also less stressful to live in the environment
626.080000 628.960000 because things are exactly where you put them.
628.960000 630.120000 Everything has a home.
630.120000 632.520000 And so it's easy to go and find things.
632.520000 634.720000 And we have more time.
634.720000 638.040000 So we've talked through this idea of stewardship,
638.040000 640.120000 the negative effects of clutter
640.120000 643.200000 and the positive effects of decluttering.
643.200000 645.520000 What do we do now?
645.520000 646.920000 That's a great question.
646.920000 648.720000 We just jump right in and throw stuff away.
648.720000 650.440000 Oh, actually no.
650.440000 651.720000 We're gonna pause.
651.720000 652.760000 We're gonna think about this.
652.760000 655.160000 We're gonna mentally prepare ourselves.
655.160000 657.960000 If you're talking about cleaning out the refrigerator shelf,
657.960000 660.400000 maybe you don't need to have much of a mental preparation.
660.400000 663.160000 I think your nose will tell you when it's time to do that.
663.160000 665.760000 But sometimes there's larger projects
665.760000 667.680000 that we approach for decluttering.
667.680000 669.160000 But we mentally prepare.
669.160000 672.160000 We did dispense some time talking about the biblical
672.160000 674.000000 and spiritual approach to our belongings,
674.000000 675.840000 what our heart posture should be.
675.840000 677.640000 So we definitely need to be thoughtful
677.640000 679.840000 when we approach this process.
679.840000 683.040000 It is helpful to approach a decision-making
683.040000 687.120000 about material possessions with a set of principles in mind.
687.120000 689.680000 This could be your own personal
689.680000 691.840000 or your family's mission statement.
691.840000 694.600000 It could just be an overarching goal
694.600000 698.160000 that you're trying to accomplish with your decluttering.
698.160000 701.000000 Keeping that in mind as you start is helpful.
701.000000 704.080000 So for example, my family enjoys serving
704.080000 706.200000 other people through hospitality.
706.200000 710.000000 So when I am organizing my storage areas in my home,
710.000000 712.760000 I expect to see folding tables and chairs,
712.760000 717.080000 extra buffet serving items, lots of coffee cups,
717.080000 720.000000 a significant amount of Christmas decorations.
720.000000 722.880000 And so I would be more likely to get rid of items
722.880000 725.560000 that don't fall into those categories
725.560000 726.960000 than I would some other things.
726.960000 729.440000 And my decisions about what to keep in store
729.440000 732.200000 will be very different than someone else's.
732.200000 736.360000 It's a great reminder to me to go back and visit
736.360000 737.840000 our family values with my husband
737.840000 738.880000 and kind of talk through those
738.880000 741.080000 because that becomes your standard
741.080000 742.400000 of how you're making decisions
742.400000 744.520000 not just about your material things, but other things.
744.520000 746.400000 - But another thing, how you spend your time,
746.400000 748.160000 what you say yes and no to.
748.160000 751.120000 And then the other thing we can do to mentally prepare
751.120000 753.640000 is pray and have the intention
753.640000 756.960000 that God will guide our decisions to His glory.
756.960000 762.360000 And then finally, we are storing up treasures in heaven.
762.360000 765.520000 So we will hold all of our material possessions
765.520000 767.120000 with an open hand.
767.120000 769.600000 God has given us these things to steward
769.600000 773.360000 and He also has the power to take them away from us.
773.360000 776.200000 So it's really about our heart posture
776.200000 778.720000 as we approach this process.
778.720000 782.440000 To recap all of that discussion that we just had Mary Beth,
782.440000 784.520000 I guess I would say the first thing we will do
784.520000 787.680000 is approach the throne with our desires.
787.680000 790.120000 And we will have a prayer in the show notes
790.120000 792.040000 that you can use to do that.
792.040000 794.240000 We will be tabulating our belongings.
794.240000 796.680000 We're gonna be counting those flocks and herds.
797.560000 800.040000 We will be putting our belongings in their proper place,
800.040000 802.400000 both physically and emotionally.
802.400000 806.120000 God has required us to have no other gods before Him.
806.120000 809.520000 And then finally, we'll be stewarding the items.
809.520000 812.760000 This includes repairing, maintaining, organizing them
812.760000 814.560000 so that they conserve their purpose.
814.560000 817.400000 - There's a lot to consider
817.400000 820.600000 when thinking through all this mental approach.
820.600000 824.840000 If you wanna pause your podcast and rewind, that's allowed.
824.840000 829.520000 But it is important to go into anything like this,
829.520000 831.720000 like tackling material possessions
831.720000 835.720000 with the right frame of mind and frame of heart.
835.720000 838.200000 It's gonna yield better results.
838.200000 841.120000 So I love that recommendation to pause and pray,
841.120000 843.040000 really approach it from the right way.
843.040000 845.280000 - One other thing I wanted to add
845.280000 849.120000 is someone who has experienced loss.
849.120000 852.440000 You may need to bring a friend into this,
852.440000 856.960000 depending on what you're going to be organizing.
856.960000 858.680000 You may need to call in some reinforcements
858.680000 860.280000 and we encourage you to do that.
860.280000 863.040000 - That's a great idea.
863.040000 865.000000 Also makes it less of a slog
865.000000 868.440000 when you have somebody else that can make it a little more fun.
868.440000 872.720000 Speaking of, that kind of leads into the physical approach.
872.720000 876.320000 We talked about the mental and heart and spiritual aspect.
876.320000 880.480000 Let's talk about what you've all been waiting for.
880.480000 884.600000 - The step-by-step guide to trust worthy decluttering.
884.600000 885.440000 - Woo-hoo!
885.440000 891.840000 - There are balloons and confetti, foghorns
891.840000 895.240000 and all sorts of things going on here.
895.240000 899.720000 Okay, before we start, I think it's important to mention,
899.720000 901.960000 you need to start small.
901.960000 904.480000 - Test small, fail small.
904.480000 908.800000 Or the flip side of that is small wins are buildable.
908.800000 912.240000 That's right, they give us confidence and encouragement.
912.240000 915.640000 So we're going to pick one area in the home, a junk drawer.
915.640000 916.880000 I just did my desk drawer.
916.880000 918.040000 That was a small win.
918.040000 921.800000 All right, Mary Beth, here we go.
921.800000 925.680000 To help you remember to be tidy,
925.680000 931.800000 we recommend that you take things out into categories,
931.800000 936.520000 decide and then you put it in its place.
936.520000 937.960000 - It's like an acronym.
937.960000 939.000000 - It is an acronym.
939.000000 940.240000 - It is an acronym.
940.240000 941.080000 - It is.
941.080000 942.080000 - T-I-D-Y.
942.080000 942.920000 - Tidy.
942.920000 943.680000 - Did you come up with a cheer, too?
943.680000 944.520000 - Yeah.
944.520000 945.360000 - All right, tidy.
945.360000 946.200000 - Tidy.
946.200000 947.040000 - Let's get into it.
947.040000 947.880000 - Tidy.
947.880000 950.080000 T, take it out.
950.080000 952.280000 So we're going to bring everything out into the open
952.280000 955.080000 wherever it is so that you can see clearly.
955.080000 959.360000 And once you have everything out of the drawer or the closet,
959.360000 960.920000 you're going to clean that area.
960.920000 962.520000 I think that's important to mention.
962.520000 965.600000 - Yeah, you don't want to go through all this hard work
965.600000 966.880000 and put things back into something
966.880000 969.080000 that's not going to serve you well
969.080000 971.640000 and not starting from a clean slate.
971.640000 974.160000 - I, what is I, Mary Beth?
974.160000 976.680000 - Into categories.
976.680000 980.160000 You are going to sort like things together.
980.160000 981.000000 - Ah.
981.000000 984.600000 You're not deciding what to do with it yet.
984.600000 986.600000 You are simply grouping things together
986.600000 988.280000 in similar categories.
988.280000 990.120000 - So in my kitchen junk drawer,
990.120000 993.840000 I would put all of the new twisty ties
993.840000 996.360000 and the used twisty ties
996.360000 999.560000 and maybe even some zip ties in a pile.
999.560000 1000.400000 - That's right.
1000.400000 1001.520000 - Okay, got it.
1001.520000 1004.960000 - All your pickle jars from your refrigerator shelf,
1004.960000 1006.800000 that's one category.
1006.800000 1008.280000 - All of your ranch dressing bottles.
1008.280000 1011.480000 All of your croutons.
1011.480000 1013.160000 - That's right, yeah.
1013.160000 1018.160000 - So that's I, T, I, D decide, this is the fun part
1018.160000 1024.040000 and also the part that can take a lot of time.
1024.040000 1025.280000 - Take a lot of time.
1025.280000 1026.120000 And that's okay.
1026.120000 1028.560000 Yeah, so you're going to decide what to do with the items.
1028.560000 1030.680000 You're going to go through each pile that you've made
1030.680000 1033.000000 and decide what to keep and what to get rid of.
1033.000000 1038.000000 And we find it most useful to make a fast pass.
1038.000000 1042.880000 So do a fast first pass through these piles.
1042.880000 1044.440000 If you're cleaning the refrigerator,
1044.440000 1047.080000 you're probably going to be able to decide pretty quickly.
1047.080000 1049.680000 But if there are some things that you're not sure about,
1049.680000 1051.080000 set them aside.
1051.080000 1052.880000 Get rid of the things that you know
1052.880000 1054.800000 you can easily get rid of first.
1054.800000 1057.320000 And then you can revisit those piles
1057.320000 1059.840000 that you had a little bit harder time with.
1059.840000 1061.480000 And we have a list of questions
1061.480000 1065.280000 that will help you go through those
1065.280000 1068.440000 more difficult decision piles.
1068.440000 1072.040000 - I would say take these questions like a toolbox,
1072.040000 1074.700000 use the ones that are helpful to you,
1074.700000 1076.960000 save the other ones for another category of things
1076.960000 1079.000000 you might be cleaning out someday.
1079.000000 1081.160000 Don't be overwhelmed by this list.
1081.160000 1082.160000 This is here to help you.
1082.160000 1083.560000 - Yes.
1083.560000 1087.840000 So I think the first question is the dominion question.
1087.840000 1091.480000 Is this item and its resources required,
1091.480000 1093.000000 its upkeep maintenance, so forth,
1093.000000 1097.080000 serve our mission statement or our overarching goal?
1097.080000 1102.640000 Next question would be, does this item make my life easier
1102.640000 1103.480000 or harder?
1103.480000 1107.960000 Is this a sentimental item?
1110.120000 1112.920000 And you could ask a practical question like,
1112.920000 1116.400000 have I used this in the last six months or a year
1116.400000 1117.800000 insert the amount of time?
1117.800000 1121.280000 Another practical question would be,
1121.280000 1123.360000 does it need to be a long-term storage?
1123.360000 1125.240000 So do I have future plans for this
1125.240000 1127.120000 or is it an heirloom item?
1127.120000 1129.360000 Those types of things would fall into that category.
1129.360000 1134.400000 Another practical question, is it still useful?
1134.400000 1139.360000 And then here are two questions
1139.360000 1140.880000 that are important to ask,
1140.880000 1144.880000 but can sometimes be a little bit more emotionally charged.
1144.880000 1146.440000 Is it mine to give away?
1146.440000 1149.920000 And then the final question is,
1149.920000 1153.560000 is this triggering negative memories, feelings or thoughts?
1153.560000 1157.920000 - As you're going through all this questions,
1157.920000 1161.760000 you're gonna be developing some piles or bags
1161.760000 1163.400000 or whatever it might be.
1163.400000 1166.240000 These are gonna sound pretty obvious.
1166.240000 1167.640000 I don't think any of this will come as a shock.
1167.640000 1169.760000 You're gonna have some things you wanna keep
1169.760000 1173.560000 and put back, you're gonna have some things to trash.
1173.560000 1177.200000 You're gonna have some things that maybe you could give or sell,
1177.200000 1179.920000 and then there's gonna be those things that you need to store.
1179.920000 1182.120000 So as you're going through this decision process,
1182.120000 1183.760000 like Sarah mentioned,
1183.760000 1188.520000 do an initial first round, make the easy decisions first,
1188.520000 1190.400000 and then you might need to come back at a later time
1190.400000 1191.800000 and go through things again.
1191.800000 1194.760000 I know there have been times in my life
1194.760000 1196.480000 when I've been cleaning things out.
1196.480000 1198.520000 This is especially hard for me with clothes
1198.520000 1202.520000 or especially things that have sentimental value.
1202.520000 1204.760000 That sometimes I just have to do around
1204.760000 1207.520000 and maybe one of my categories that I'm putting things into
1207.520000 1211.920000 now is wait and come back in a week or a month
1211.920000 1214.120000 or whatever it is and then go through it again.
1214.120000 1218.680000 Because my brain, as we've mentioned,
1218.680000 1220.480000 does not do this easily.
1220.480000 1222.680000 So sometimes I have to give myself a little grace
1222.680000 1223.920000 and just do the initial round
1223.920000 1225.800000 and then come back and do it again later.
1225.800000 1229.160000 I had a perfect example of this.
1229.160000 1232.360000 I had some things that I had inherited
1232.360000 1234.520000 and some were easy to get rid of,
1234.520000 1237.680000 some I wasn't sure what to do with and so on.
1237.680000 1239.560000 So I put some things in storage
1239.560000 1243.040000 and after about six years,
1243.040000 1245.480000 I was able to take some things out of storage
1245.480000 1249.640000 and they no longer triggered any negative memories for me.
1249.640000 1251.960000 I was able to incorporate them into my home
1251.960000 1255.320000 and it was a joy of the same token.
1255.320000 1258.440000 I had some items that after eight or nine years,
1258.440000 1260.580000 the emotions were not going away.
1260.580000 1261.920000 The negative emotions were not going away.
1261.920000 1264.440000 So I finally made a decision to get rid of them
1264.440000 1267.400000 and that was a difficult decision
1267.400000 1271.000000 but it really felt very freeing.
1271.000000 1276.000000 So again, we are realizing that we're not talking about
1276.000000 1278.040000 the extra bottle of Worcestershire sauce
1278.040000 1281.040000 and your fridge here, but start small.
1281.040000 1284.000000 Start with a fridge so that you can exercise those muscles
1284.000000 1286.360000 and so when you get to the big important decisions
1286.360000 1289.920000 or the tough decisions that it becomes a little easier,
1289.920000 1293.920000 there's one more letter, Marybeth and that is why
1293.920000 1296.280000 and tell us what why is.
1296.280000 1299.480000 You put it in its proper place.
1299.480000 1302.480000 Ooh, that sounds like I'm exercising dominion.
1302.480000 1306.120000 It's so nice when our thoughts tie back to our previous thoughts.
1306.120000 1309.320000 I know and it's also got a double meaning.
1309.320000 1310.160000 Yeah.
1310.160000 1312.360000 I think back to our pilot for this podcast,
1312.360000 1315.160000 we talked about big G and little G
1315.160000 1317.320000 and we make things out to be gods in our life
1317.320000 1320.520000 and so here is where we can put things in their proper place,
1320.520000 1324.600000 emotionally, spiritually and physically.
1324.600000 1328.720000 And there are a myriad of ways you can physically
1328.720000 1330.840000 store and organize items.
1330.840000 1333.400000 We're not here to explain all of those to you today
1333.400000 1336.240000 but we do just recommend that you're thoughtful
1336.240000 1337.440000 about how you do that.
1337.440000 1340.440000 Make sure when you're putting things back in that drawer
1340.440000 1342.520000 that you're not just throwing it all back in there
1342.520000 1343.880000 and making more chaos.
1343.880000 1345.320000 You're doing it in an orderly way.
1345.320000 1348.640000 When you open the drawer, you can see and access what you need.
1348.640000 1351.200000 There's a lot of fun resources.
1351.200000 1353.920000 You just have to do an internet search
1353.920000 1357.520000 or go to Pinterest or whatever.
1357.520000 1360.880000 The Instagram influencers will sell you a myriad of things
1360.880000 1361.880000 to help you organize.
1361.880000 1362.880000 Exactly.
1362.880000 1363.720000 There are books.
1363.720000 1366.200000 There are entire sections at the bookstore
1366.200000 1369.600000 if anyone still goes to those that have books to do with this.
1369.600000 1372.440000 So we're not gonna come in and tell you how to organize it
1372.440000 1374.920000 but we're just gonna say there's resources out there.
1374.920000 1377.920000 Well, and one more point on that is we talked about
1377.920000 1381.880000 kind of things you may have inherited or heirloom items.
1381.880000 1383.920000 I think about my wedding dress.
1383.920000 1385.960000 Like there are things that need to be stored properly.
1385.960000 1386.800000 Oh, correct.
1386.800000 1388.880000 And so be thoughtful about how you're doing.
1388.880000 1389.880000 Family photographs.
1389.880000 1390.720000 To preserve them.
1390.720000 1393.040000 Yes, need to be an acid-free photo books.
1393.040000 1394.120000 All that sort of thing.
1394.120000 1396.640000 Yeah, I think that's important to recognize.
1396.640000 1401.640000 All right, to recap, tidy, take it out into categories, decide
1401.640000 1407.360000 and you put it in its place.
1407.360000 1410.040000 I think there are a couple more things
1410.040000 1414.960000 that we should mention when it comes to getting rid of stuff
1414.960000 1416.080000 that isn't trash.
1416.080000 1418.120000 I often struggle with this.
1418.120000 1421.960000 There are, of course, goodwill, salvation, army,
1421.960000 1424.920000 different thrift stores that take donations.
1424.920000 1427.880000 I like to do that, especially when it's a thrift store
1427.880000 1431.280000 that is giving back to the community.
1431.280000 1435.160000 Sometimes there are consignment shops.
1435.160000 1436.760000 Yeah, I do this with both of my sons.
1436.760000 1440.560000 When we are cleaning out toys and it's things that they don't
1440.560000 1443.440000 use anymore kind of a ready to move on from,
1443.440000 1446.280000 we'll kind of take the higher value items
1446.280000 1447.320000 and they can take those.
1447.320000 1449.720000 We have a children's consignment store in town.
1449.720000 1452.400000 They can take those items and sell them at the store
1452.400000 1454.360000 and they get the money for it.
1454.360000 1457.320000 And so it's teaching them about financial responsibility
1457.320000 1461.160000 and then they can use that money for it might be new toys.
1461.160000 1463.040000 It might be saving up for something.
1463.040000 1465.440000 It's just a good kind of two birds with one stone.
1465.440000 1468.240000 We're getting it out of the house plus they're learning
1468.240000 1470.000000 about the value of things.
1470.000000 1474.080000 They're also local buy nothing groups, free cycle.
1474.080000 1475.880000 I think was one, I don't know if that's still around.
1475.880000 1477.560000 I used it like 20 years ago.
1477.560000 1478.640000 I think it's still around.
1478.640000 1481.000000 Yeah, I use our local buy nothing group all the time.
1481.000000 1485.040000 It's great for those things that do not need to go in the trash.
1485.040000 1486.640000 You don't know anyone that needs it,
1486.640000 1489.040000 but somebody could use it.
1489.040000 1492.920000 So you put it out there and bless somebody else's own with it.
1492.920000 1494.640000 Absolutely.
1494.640000 1497.960000 I'm really glad that we have chosen this topic
1497.960000 1502.560000 before this time of the year because I think
1502.560000 1504.040000 these things are really going to help me.
1504.040000 1510.960000 And I'm going to try to finish up my Christmas decoration
1510.960000 1514.640000 organizing and storage using some of these principles.
1514.640000 1517.760000 As I was trying to put some things away
1517.760000 1520.200000 yesterday and a cabinet in my house,
1520.200000 1522.000000 I was thinking about us recording this episode
1522.000000 1522.880000 and I thought, that's it.
1522.880000 1525.800000 This cabinet is going to be my test project.
1525.800000 1528.920000 There you go for our tidy method.
1528.920000 1530.000000 I like it.
1530.000000 1533.000000 Well, we can wrap up by saying this.
1533.000000 1536.600000 God has given us everything.
1536.600000 1541.760000 And it is part of our directive to have dominion
1541.760000 1545.560000 and keep things in their proper place in our lives.
1545.560000 1550.120000 As Bishop Sheen said a hundred years ago,
1550.120000 1555.880000 you must remember to love people and use things
1555.880000 1560.200000 rather than to love things and use people.
1560.200000 1561.400000 Happy decluttering.
1561.400000 1564.240000 [MUSIC PLAYING]
1564.240000 1574.680000 Hey, y'all.
1574.680000 1576.160000 Mary Beth here.
1576.160000 1577.960000 Sarah and I are so glad that you chose
1577.960000 1579.880000 to listen to our podcast.
1579.880000 1583.480000 And while we think that we're awesome friends to have,
1583.480000 1585.960000 we just wanted to clarify that we are not mental health
1585.960000 1588.920000 professionals and want you to know that this podcast should not
1588.920000 1592.551125 take the place of any paid professional advice.