Cleaning Out My Closet

"Let It Go...Let It Go..." I have yet to see the movie "Frozen", and to be perfectly honest, I don't know that I'll ever see it. But I'll admit, that's quite a catchy tune. And it sort of became the underlying theme of our small group meeting last Sunday evening as we were talking about what led each of us to Jesus Christ. The fact that one of the gentlemen was singing it helped embed it deep into my brain so that it could come out rather unexpectedly yesterday. I sent a message to one of the ladies in my small group that said, "I'm cleaning out closets today and found myself singing 'Let It Go'!"

I have difficulty letting go of clothing...and papers...and books...and photographs...and anything else that may or may not have sentimental value. Yes, I have clutter and it frightens me that I may have hoarding tendencies. Yesterday morning I was laying in bed fending off the start of another migraine and I realized I had turned on the TV to an episode of 'Hoarders' that I actually had never seen before. I felt horrible for the people in this particular episode and decided, I need to do what I can to stop whatever tendencies I have from progressing. I did a bit of research on the subject as I waited for my meds to do their thing and discovered why people create clutter and how hoarders begin hoarding. It is fascinating and terrifying at the same time.

Once I felt my wooeyness had subsided enough to do something productive, I didn't hesitate to start cleaning out closets. This actually makes the fourth time I have done this since January 2013 and each time it gets a bit easier. A few months ago I actually invited my husband to help me and it was a great activity for us both. I didn't have as many clothes to remove from my closet because of a drastic size change this time, like I have the last 3 times, because I have maintained my weight loss and my size hasn't changed again (thank goodness, because that can add up quickly).

After I finished my closet, it was time to start on hubby's closet. Yes, our house was built in the 1880s and our master bedroom does indeed have two separate closets. My husband also has probably three times as many clothes as I do now. Wow. I don't think he realizes that, either. So I began sorting and singing "Let It Go...Let It Go!!!" As I was sifting through his piles and piles of shirts, I hit the motherload of firefighter t-shirts. He worked so hard to earn them. Some from the fire academy, others from the tech rescue team, more from the fire department. I can't believe this October will be 10 years since he's been on the department. That's when it struck me that, even though he no longer wears these shirts, they are an important part of his life and I need to do something special for him with them. Individual pillows? Nah. T-shirt quilt? Yes.

I mulled over the idea the rest of the afternoon, wrestling with how I'd bring it up to him. While we were eating dinner, I just sort of blurted it out. Much to my surprise, he loved the idea. So I've added another very special project to my long, long list of very special projects. I'm pretty sure this will be my favorite one.