STORAGE (well, kind of)

My husband used to say, as another storage 'solution' (cupboards/shelving etc) entered the house - oh no! not MORE storage!!! He was lamenting the crazy world he had married into - that of a 'hoarder' - yours truly. He is of the other extreme, that of a 'waster' (from my perspective and as described by something starting with O... I'll find the quote later!). Never the twain shall meet...or so it seemed.

However, after 10 years together, I can truly say he is beginning to see the benefit of my ways. Well, some of them AND me, of his. The clutter that defined me (his theory was that it was my protective cocoon) is now beginning to be slowly shed, as I learn more about who I am and try to make some space in my life for two recent additions (my kids) which are much more important than all that 'stuff'.

Each day I promise to get rid of something else and I feel myself lighten with each thing that goes.

The strangest part of all of this is that the lightening also appears to be physical...having always struggled with my weight, I am now finding it drop off as each day passes. My husband is eternally slim. Weird coincidence? Perhaps. All I know is that it is happening and not much else has changed in my life apart from my new space clearing, de-cluttering ways. Perhaps its all that physical actvity involved with going through my stuff each day! (wink)

Anyway, just mentioning that as a side note.

The emotional lightening is refreshing. Simplifying my life (and yes, organising the things we need and also want tokeep for various important reasons) is really helping me feel less stressed on a daily basis. I no longer feel like the mouse on the wheel, running running running to keep up but have managed to stop and get off and enjoy more timewith my husband, my kids, my friends and most importantly, myself. I'd forgotten how much I really like time with myself. I'm pretty cool company I have to say. And I make myself laugh. Yep - I should definitely do more of this.

I also seem to be on a 'green' journey, like a lot of other people these days, I think some of it is influenced by the media and the rest has a lot to do with becoming a parent and wondering what world I will be leaving to my kids. The reasons aren't as important as the journey I am on so I haven't really thought much about them. Each day I try to learn more and feel that living life more simply is the way to go. Expectation seems to be a big big factor on my journey. So much is possible these days that we seem to almost expect to be entertained all the time and being bombarded with information and inputsevery second is 'normal'. So, this is what we expect and a lot of us have forgotten what it is to enjoy the simple things in life, which, truth be told, for me are the best. Like stopping to excite our sense of smell by closing our eyes and sniffing a spring rose bloom. Letting a cube of rich creamy exquisite chocolate slowly melt in our mouths. Giving someone a big bear hug. Things like these are what our bodies crave. Connection to other people. Connection with ourselves and our senses (yes - ALL 5 of them!)...but, getting back to expectation.

Expectation can get in the way of happiness.

This reminds me of a recent trip to the South of France with some good friends who live in London. My husband & I very much looked forward to catching up with them over the week we had planned together and just hanging out, relaxing, cooking, eating and talking as we hadn't seen them for over 6 months. They seemed to have trouble settling into thistype of relaxed holiday, however, I think from having come from a capital city like London, where you are constantly bombarded with stuff to do. They wanted to 'do stuff' every day while we wanted to chill out and not do much at all! Our expectations of the place we were in therefore clouded our views of the holiday. We felt a little like we didn't really get a chance to relax like we would have liked and they felt like they didn't get to do much as there wasn't much to do in the town we stayed in. Needless to say, we all enjoyed each others' company and the lovely sunshine of the south of France but did come away with other less positive feelings too - all completely as a result of our expectations.

So, consider what you expect each day. Of yourself. Of your friends and family. And of life in general. What do you think others expect of you and how much do you care? Are you expected to live the high life? To aspire to riches and wealth (ofthe rock star/movie star kind)? Think about what you aspire to. And why? Think about the things that really make you smile. And laugh. And, if you have kids or know anyone that does, watch them at play. Serious play. Are they happy? Yes indeed.

With those parting questions, I am off to play with my daughter. More on the green stuff later.

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