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Breaking Free
From Stuff
By
Natalie Hale
Clutter seems to be something that
impinges modern Americans like no other generation. I wonder if
it’s not one of those prophesied plagues of the Last Days!
Think back to previous generations, when the Great Depression was
in full force. People didn’t seem to have too much trouble
with having too much stuff. They just used what they had and had
to make it work.
Clutter is something modern Americans
have come to learn to live with. I’m not sure why we have
stuff and hold on to it and there are lots of ideas and books out
there about it. Whatever the reason there are two points to understand
about clutter.
- Stuff is not bad; we need stuff
to survive. It’s setting our hearts on and having too much
stuff that is the problem.
- We need a place to put our stuff.
Even if we only had five items, if we didn’t have a place
to put them, they’d still be in our way.
And then if you have children, the
mess gets even bigger with toys, clothes, electronics, and all the
other things kids have.
In order to control the clutter and
keep it from coming back, we need to understand the Lord’s
standards. He sets the patterns for how we are to live our lives,
for how we are to be happy. He wants us to have things and to enjoy
them (See D&C 59: 17-20) but to use them according to His standards
of stewardships.
When you think about it, everything
is Heavenly Father’s and He has just loaned it to us so that
we could learn to use according to His principles (See D&C 59:21).
Part of our stewardship is to do as
the Lord has commanded us to “Set in order your houses; keep
slothfulness and uncleanness far from you.” (D&C 90:18)
So how do we do that? We know that we need to be good stewards,
we know that Heavenly Father has given us this Earth and all that’s
in it for our use and benefit (but within His guidelines), so how
do we go about keeping it clean — particularly in our own
homes where the real test of life takes place.
When it comes to keeping a house clean,
sometimes it helps to divide the chores. Everyone cleans up his
own dishes except the children who are too young to do it themselves.
That means either washing them yourselves or putting them in the
dishwasher. That alone would eliminate clutter from the kitchen!
Teach your children through precept
and example that leaving things on the stairs or in the hallway
or on the floor is not acceptable. That means that if you want your
kids to clean their rooms, you need to have a clean room too.
But there are a few things every parent
needs to know before letting the children take part in the household
chores: Let go of having to have things your way. When your children
help, make allowance for the fact that they are kids and can’t
do the job as fast or as well as you can. Don’t use their
lack of ability as an excuse for your own sloppiness.
Now, I have addressed keeping clutter
away. But how do we deal with it once it has built up beyond almost
incredible control?
Find out what you really need by taking
inventory of your life. Are you a college student, a homemaker,
a grandma, a diplomat’s wife? Depending on your circumstances
at this given point in your life, take a look at what is cluttering
you and get it into a pile. Take it to your yard if you have to
and sort out what you use, what is junk, and what should be thrown
away.
If you haven’t used any particular item in a year (holiday
things are the exception) then get rid of it. If you have lots of
leftover baby clothes from when your grown-and-gone kids were little,
keep little mementoes and give the rest away. If anything is broken
and you have no immediate hobby or ability to fix it, get rid of
it.
For the stuff that you decide to keep,
as mentioned before, there needs to be an accessible place for it.
Take a look at Ikea.com or TheContainerstore.com catalogs for ideas
on how to store things with style.
Always remember that it doesn’t
matter how rich or poor you may be, if you live in a small apartment
or a mansion, God only asks that we do all we can with our given
stewardships (See 2 Nephi 25:23).
Clutter is not something we have to
live with. There is hope. We just have to pay the price.
More parenting helps are available for free at my website http://www.enlightenedhomemaker.com.
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