By Christina Rodriguez, age 11.
Have you looked at your house recently? Do you see it cluttered with gifts (junk) from family, friends, and,well, things you bought because you thought they were pretty?
If you want to De-clutter your house, you have to ask your self the following questions:
Do I really need this?
Have I ever used this?
You're going to find yourself saying: "Well, Susie (anybody) gave this to me for my birthday 2 years ago....I should keep it."
NO! You shouldn't keep it! If it's not an absolute yes, then it's a no.
Say your best friend gave you some nice china plates last Christmas. Have you used it by now, or are you still saying: "I'll save it for a special occasion"? Use it while you can because it's not going with you to heaven.
Now, I know that somethings are going to have to stay, but try to make it as few things as possible.
Here are the three main rules to De-clutter your house:
1. Be strong. Being able to throw away things that were given to you isn't easy but you're going to have to throw them away sometime.
2. Don't be hesitant. If you can't choose between throwing something away or keeping it then its a no-no. Like I said before, if its not an absolute yes then it's a no.
3. Don't keep something just because you are afraid you might hurt some body's feelings. I am 99.999% sure that they won't notice it's gone.
Laura's note: De-cluttering is a hot issue for those of us who have spent countless hours packing and unpacking.....and still don't know where to put the stuff. Remember that our storage business generates multibillions of dollars annually.
