Cardboard boxes and packing tape consumed my fall.
After Hurricane Helene flooded my mother-in-law’s house in late September, she made the hard decision to move out instead of renovating her home. Wearing masks to protect against mold, we sorted through 30 years of contents and a lifetime of memories in about ten days. Given the challenge, she was surprisingly ruthless about what she needed to keep and what could be discarded. It was emotionally and physically exhausting, but we got it done.
My own mom also moved this fall. She wasn’t displaced by a hurricane, but the fast turnover in the real estate market forced her to move quickly once she found the home she wanted. She, too, had decades of belongings to sort through to be able to fit into her new, downsized home. The sorting and purging continue even now that she’s moved in.
So. Much. Stuff.
Let’s be honest, most of us have far more than we need. More comes in than goes out, and before we know it, we look around and can’t imagine where it all came from! Going through the excess takes time we don’t have, so we put it off, assuming we’ll get to it eventually. But the clutter affects our daily lives and then someone else must go through our mess after we’re gone.
So how do we deal with all our stuff? Let’s take a cue from our Scandinavian friends and adopt the darkly named practice of Swedish death cleaning. The idea is to downsize your belongings well ahead of your death to relieve your loved ones of the chore after you pass. But done at any age, the benefits of Swedish death cleaning go well beyond cleared shelves and extra space in your closets.
Popularized by the 2017 bestseller The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning and the 2023 Amy Poehler TV show of the same name, the quirky-sounding practice is well worth your time.
1 – Do it for others
The last thing your grieving loved ones want to do after you pass is go through your stuff. By cleaning out your own closets while you are alive, you lessen their burden at a really difficult time. Think of it as a gift to those you care about…the ultimate consideration of your impact on others!
Instead, take responsibility to pare down your own things while you’re still here. For the things you keep, talk to others about why they’re meaningful to you. Tell your loved ones if you want a particular item to go to a certain person when you’re gone, or better yet, go ahead and give it to them now. Why wait to pass on items you’re willing to part with if someone can enjoy them now? Make your intentional words and generosity while you’re living a part of your legacy.
2 – Do it for yourself
Whether it’s clothes, toys, gadgets, paperwork, photos or digital files, it’s hard to function well with so much clutter taking over your life. Cleaning out your physical (and digital) space clears your mind. A good purge allows you to focus your attention on what’s most important to you instead of being weighed down by things that don’t really matter.
Without that extra baggage, you gain the mental capacity to do what’s the real and lasting work you are meant to do. So make the hard choices of what to keep and let go of the rest.
3 – Shift your mindset
Going forward, how can you think differently about what you have and how you use it? Our modern culture trains us to believe we need the latest and greatest in everything. But before you buy (or download) something new, think about whether you really need it. We so often accumulate more and more without even thinking, so be mindful of what you’re bringing home. If you don’t really need or want it, it doesn’t deserve to take up your space.
Also, consider where you get the things you want. Can you borrow a one-time need like a tool or formal dress? Can you get books from the library and only buy a few special ones new? Can you get that piece of furniture or jacket from a thrift store or Facebook Marketplace? Limiting what you bring into your space will limit what you (or others) must get rid of later. Reusing what’s already out there instead of buying everything brand new helps the planet.
It’s not easy to retrain your brain to think differently, but with time and consistent habits, it’ll happen. And you won’t miss all that extra stuff!
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go clean out a closet…
