Shedding

The process of letting go, making room for the new.

Early last year, I returned to my apartment one morning fresh from a shower following a workout. The sun streamed through my south-facing windows, and the day felt new: I was on leave from work, and the time was mine.

Suddenly, I was overtaken by a desire to clean — and clean out. I followed the pull, starting in my kitchen and making my way through drawers, cupboards, and shelves, grabbing items and spreading them across my counter to evaluate them and decide whether to keep them or give them away. I moved on to my living room, bathroom, and closets, pulling and purging, packing up items and carting them to Community Thrift on Valencia Street.

In the year since, I’ve continued to follow this impulse that periodically strikes — shedding bits of my old self and leaving those parts behind.

Spring Cleaning

Do we get rid of things when we’re on the verge of change, or does change precipitate our desire to get rid of things?

As you evolve, do you catch yourself wanting to toss things that don’t fit anymore, metaphorically or literally?

In the last year, I’ve let go of old company retreat t-shirts, mugs engraved with our logo, and hats sporting it. I’ve shredded a former partner’s mail (promotional, in my defense!); I’ve recycled old bills, bank statements, and medical records I’ve digitized.

I’ve also tucked some things away that I no longer want to see daily — things I call “signaling objects,” or items that reinforce a certain identity or way of being I want to part with. I’ve shelved medications instead of leaving them on the counter, stacked books on pain management out of sight, and rolled up yoga mats and straps in big baskets.

I’ve also placed items that call for decisions in piles I’ll get to when the time is right. (Just like we hang photographs to remind ourselves of experiences we’ve loved, we can put away objects that remind us of things we aren’t quite ready to face yet — or that reinforce an identity we hope to transcend.)

In this past year of letting go, I’ve come to realize that shedding isn’t just about removing — it’s about revealing. It’s about making space for the new to emerge.

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash