complexity to simplicity; the journey begins

When I was a young girl, my grandmother shared with me her philosophy of life.  She told me, “In all things, Rosie, remember to KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID.”  This is simply remembered by its acronym KISS.  Grandma’s house was not cluttered.  The art was hung just where it ought to be.  She could find any utensil in the kitchen.  She did not have piles of mail on every flat surface.  Even Grandma’s spice cabinet was organized.

So what happened to me?  I have the desire to live simply, to know where everything is, to not feel overwhelmed by my belongings.  The truth is Grandma was wiser than the rest of us.  I come from a family of packrats (except Grandma, of course).  Grandpa was a packrat; Mom and Dad are packrats; my siblings and my children are packrats.  Even my grandchildren are packrats.  Most of all, I AM A PACKRAT.  There, I said it for the entire world to read.  If knowing it is half the battle, then I am well on my way to a cure.

And I humbly invite you to follow me on my journey to a clear mind and a clutter free life.  I will address this one project/area at a time.  I undertook the first step this morning.  Before I could start documenting my progress via photos, I actually had to clear out my SD card as it was completely full. 

Please note that all of these files represent two years of memories all lumped together in a way that made them useless and 1/2 hour of wasted time cleaning out my phone.

When I tell you that this will be a huge undertaking, I am not exaggerating, but I believe that there are many people trying to overcome the same problem.  I hope to help others along the way.