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Tidy shelves and neater homes? What I got wrong about decluttering
As homes shrink and families age, decluttering takes on new meaning and urgency.
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Decluttering is, ultimately, an act of love, says the writer. By making those decisions ourselves, we spare children and loved ones uncertainty and grief.
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Jeffery Tan
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I once thought decluttering was about tidy shelves and neat homes, a la the annual spring-cleaning regimen that I grew up with. But when my maternal grandmother died – and later, my mother – I realised it was about something deeper: how we choose to live and leave.
Let me elaborate. Sorting the belongings of loved ones who have passed away was not just a physical exercise. It was emotional work, heavy with memories and personal struggle on what to keep and what to give away. After several weekends of sifting through items with church friends, I donated most of my grandmother’s and mother’s things to The Salvation Army.
