Stuff

Merril and I are big on holding on to things if they are beautiful, joyful or useful.  It occurred to me this morning, there is only one of them that is not subjective.  That is useful.
A hammer drill for example was designed for a purpose.  We have only used it a couple of times, but it is handy to have.  If we went to a place where a hammer drill was not needed, it would be hard to justify holding on to it.
For items like that, I have always been keen on what I call common interest groups. Einstein made a point of not remembering phone numbers.  He did not want to clutter his brain if he had access to the numbers.  My thinking is, why have something that costs me heaps if I have access to it.  That goes for our stuff.  If we already have it, why should someone else purchase it for a one-off project.  For me, that does not apply for useful items used regularly.  Besides, if I save money, I can purchase other things that may be useful one-offs to another.
Beautiful and joyful are incredibly subjective.  What is that way to me, may not be to someone else.  Someone else thinking something is not beautiful or joyful, does not make it not so.  To me, this is particularly true in a marriage situation.  Merril and I ensure we both have the opportunity to go through things before it is determined an item has no value.  Just because something is meaningless to me does not mean that it is not very important to Merril.  It would be wrong to treat with contempt, something that has significance to Merril.  Once something is gone it is gone, and often there is no getting it back.
I was amazed.  Merril and I visit the Treasure Market.  I saw a guy walking out with something that I had no idea about.  It was not something I would ever want.  I would pass it by without a second glance.  Yet he had looked at it and though, “I can use that.”
Keeping things very much needs to be tempered though.  Many things are pointless to hold on to.  We see hoarder shows on Foxtel.  One thing the places all have in common is that stuff dominates.  Every available centimetre is taken up with things.  In some cases it is like a plastic bag.  The hoarder thinks, “I’ll keep that as it could come in handy.”  I’ll never forget in the movie Labyrinth someone had to leave their house.  They loaded themselves up with stuff they thought they needed.  In the end they could hardly move.  They had to ditch some things so they could move.
I also think a solution needs to be the best solution, and not just a convenient one.  Sometimes my solution just shifts the burden onto someone else.  Merril and I often comment that when we are gone someone else will need to deal with our stuff.  There may be very little emotional attachment.  Obviously, there was an emotional attachment to the person, but I had to do that with mum and dads stuff.  I keep a few little memento’s, but just about everything went to another who could use it.
For some it does not matter. Bull in a china shop.  Jack boot solutions to delicate situations.  For Merril and I it does matter.  Naturally there will come a day when it does not matter to us as we will be gone.  In the meantime, it does.