How I created breathing space in my house

The things we surround ourselves with are a statement – of our habits, plans, aspirations. So often we hold onto things as conduits, ways to keep the past alive in the present. But keeping more than you need, or enjoy – those useless bargains, those just-in-case items – is simply nostalgia for the past, or anticipations for the future; anything but living in the present.

Establishing the delicate balance between holding on and letting go required an awareness not always easy to tune into. I was still a little nervous to divest. Would I feel adrift, untethered without my history of objects? Grounding myself though, in my life as it is, and not as it was, helped make that final break, and let go. I found purging the most optimistic act of all; a way of looking forward. To hold on to the past is to say the future will never be better than what you’ve already experienced.

Having finally hauled it all off for donation, the uncovered space is freeing. It still feels full, but now that’s with quiet, with stillness. And suddenly, the remaining objects feel renewed. I’d spent so long holding on to the weight of what I knew. Clearing those blockages allows me to go on a little more lightly, unburdened. Making way for change, welcoming possibility, and embracing potential is what allows life to happen. I’ve finally come to see, empty room is breathing room.