![]() Someone recently recommended to me the book “The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning. How to Free yourself and Your Family from a Lifetime of Clutter” by Margareta Magnusson. I had never heard of it. So I put a hold on the audio book from my local library. It came up as ready to listen to just days after the death of my Father-in-law. I wished I had been able to suggest this book to my in-laws prior to his passing. The author, who was in her 80’s at least when she wrote it back in 2018, is quite funny and prioritizes like I do. Although she is not a fan of hiring help with downsizing! She thinks services like mine are expensive when considering you want to do this slowly with thoughtfulness. So maybe there is one thing we would disagree on. Not that you need to do it fast without thinking it through. Doing it slowly with a great deal of thoughtfulness is best for sure. AND there are many folks out there that will never take the time to do it that way. Sometimes, not always I realize, doing something quickly without getting too in your head about it, works quite well. It is my belief, that if you truly need something, it will find it’s way to you. So not giving or throwing things away because “I might need it someday” can fill up your spaces fast. Possibly cost you a lot of money as well. Way more than buying something again down the road should you indeed need it. Especially if you don’t remember you had it or can’t find it and buy it again anyway. Her main point is - do you really want to burden your family with ALL your stuff when you die? Obviously we need some stuff. But a house filled to the brim with stuff is an overwhelming and burdensome gift to leave those you love and care about. So thinking of them now is a gift you can give from beyond. Have you seen how many storage rental businesses there are around in your community? Americans are BIG consumers! It’s an addiction. And like most addictions, not a healthy one. We have so much stuff we can’t even store it in our homes that we have to spend money to rent space to store it! Wise? Cheap? No. This is when hiring help is cheaper than not! We are destroying our health, our lives and our planet - all at the same time - with all our STUFF! The items we keep and the items we throw away every day - plastic being the main thing. But food, clothes etc. The fashion industry has come under great scrutiny about the impact on the earth. And those companies that sell the clothes who are tossing returned items because it is cheaper than re-stocking them! When will it stop? Well maybe when we learn something from this Swedish death cleaning woman for a start. She suggest decluttering throughout your life, not waiting until you are closer to a likely departure. After all, none of us know when exactly that will be. Decluttering and donating or gifting (or tossing) sooner rather than later, is just wise and kind. Less to clutter you now, and less work for your family members to have to deal with when your times comes. I am happy to help you downsize, de-clutter, get organized, to be enjoyed at the time and well into the future! It really is a good feeling to know what you have, be able to find it, and be free of piles of things, duplicates or items spread out everywhere. I bet many of us could get a second kitchen up and running without missing much from our own! Open a drawer or two in your kitchen and if you can’t see what is in there in about 10 seconds, you could benefit from my services. Or the book at least.
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AuthorBringer of Light and Love. Transformation Facilitator. Lover of Mother Earth & Nature Archives
January 2025
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