Minimize clutter - mind, body, spirit...one of the reminders on my 'bucket list'. In an effort to de-clutter my environment, I have been trying to clear out the accumulations of a partial-lifetime. Silly things, paper things, old things ... things that do not fit my body, my life, my goals any longer.
I came across a guitar, unused, in a closet. This is not the first unused guitar I have ever owned. This is one in a long line of unused guitars I have owned...somewhere in my silly head I keep thinking that miraculously I will wake up one day and with discipline I have yet to discover, start practicing and playing this instrument.
Today was, once again, NOT that day.
There are things we yearn to do in life that we should never discard; dreams that we still need to pursue...and then there is the neverending presence of an unused guitar in my closet. Not a talent I have ever had; not a gift lurking in my soul waiting for the right moment to jump out and promote me into the realm of Segovia....or Lui Collins...or Lady Gaga. Right up there with my desire to dance and sing, that guitar sits just out of sight; day in and day out.
I am not quite sure what this guitar, and my inability to post it on Craig's list so it can follow in the path of previous unused guitars, really means. Perhaps it is that there are so many beautiful gifts and skills in life that we cannot each experience ...perhaps it is a reminder to find the things we can do and to keep doing them? Somewhere in the world there is a person sitting looking at a pile of old Tee-shirts and wishing they could make a really nifty necklace out of them. I should ditch the guitar and stock up on sissors and save those people...because I do know how to do that! Perhaps I can write a story, an essay, a poem...to get someone through their day, and they in turn will play me a song...and I will listen to the sweet music and my day will be better.
I need to pass this guitar along, and not replace it once again 3 months down the road. I need to seek out the music the world already offers; perhaps dance in the moonlight, and when the windows of my car are rolled up tightly, sing at the top of my lungs ... and call it a 'really good day'.
The guitar is not my muse...but the music it makes belongs to all of us...a musician will find the notes, and a singer will find the words, and the world will hear the song.
And last, but not least, I will find my way.
Monday, April 25, 2011
...clutter....part 2
....now let's talk about the stationary bicycle....
another strange thing happens almost annually ...a piece of exercise equipment, large or small appears in my home. occasionally it gets assembled...usually it is only partially so! I am not sure, but I think there is an exercise fairy that appears later in life to take over for the tooth fairy. this fairy seems to cast a spell on me so that I once again (yes, this is a repetitive process) convince myself that I will save money by purchasing a piece of exercise equipment vs. going to a fully equipped gym. I am also convinced that my fragile self-esteem will be protected from the harm that would befall it in a public place.
I do believe I save money. Before the exercise fairy appeared, I used to sign up for months at a gym, go for the initial training, and then within a week or two, never go back. I was what you might call a walking 'profit margin' for said establishments. I had nothing to show for it; but this did not deter me because oft times the very same year, after a cooling off period, I would go through the same process.
By having a tangible item now placed awkwardly in my living room or bedroom to trip over, I could see where my money went on a daily basis. On those times when I actually assembled the equipment, I was able to watch TV from an uncomfortable position until the inevitable laundry ended up draped all over the contraption trying to dry. I was at best reclaiming a little floor space for a truly useful purpose. After months or years, I would finally realize a $10 wooden rack offered better drying properties than the tubular steel winding from floor to ceiling, and I would get rid of the item...for the time being.
For those times when the item never actually got assembled in total, I have no place to hang laundry, and suffer many stubbed toes.
These rituals also plague me...I am looking at a partially-assembled recombinant bicycle. I have been looking at it for over 3 years if memory serves me correctly. It definitely is on my de-clutter list. It has not moved any closer to the door yet on its own. I am not quite sure what this means. Perhaps personally torturing myself with the 'you should have's serves a macabre purpose in my life? I believe I will need to think about this one a while longer. Craig's list awaits... but I need to get rid of that d#!% guitar first!
another strange thing happens almost annually ...a piece of exercise equipment, large or small appears in my home. occasionally it gets assembled...usually it is only partially so! I am not sure, but I think there is an exercise fairy that appears later in life to take over for the tooth fairy. this fairy seems to cast a spell on me so that I once again (yes, this is a repetitive process) convince myself that I will save money by purchasing a piece of exercise equipment vs. going to a fully equipped gym. I am also convinced that my fragile self-esteem will be protected from the harm that would befall it in a public place.
I do believe I save money. Before the exercise fairy appeared, I used to sign up for months at a gym, go for the initial training, and then within a week or two, never go back. I was what you might call a walking 'profit margin' for said establishments. I had nothing to show for it; but this did not deter me because oft times the very same year, after a cooling off period, I would go through the same process.
By having a tangible item now placed awkwardly in my living room or bedroom to trip over, I could see where my money went on a daily basis. On those times when I actually assembled the equipment, I was able to watch TV from an uncomfortable position until the inevitable laundry ended up draped all over the contraption trying to dry. I was at best reclaiming a little floor space for a truly useful purpose. After months or years, I would finally realize a $10 wooden rack offered better drying properties than the tubular steel winding from floor to ceiling, and I would get rid of the item...for the time being.
For those times when the item never actually got assembled in total, I have no place to hang laundry, and suffer many stubbed toes.
These rituals also plague me...I am looking at a partially-assembled recombinant bicycle. I have been looking at it for over 3 years if memory serves me correctly. It definitely is on my de-clutter list. It has not moved any closer to the door yet on its own. I am not quite sure what this means. Perhaps personally torturing myself with the 'you should have's serves a macabre purpose in my life? I believe I will need to think about this one a while longer. Craig's list awaits... but I need to get rid of that d#!% guitar first!
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