Chauran - Clearing Clutter: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual

Llewellyn Publications

Woodbury, Minnesota

Copyright Information

Clearing Clutter: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual 2015 by Alexandra Chauran.

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First e-book edition 2015

E-book ISBN: 9780738745473

Book design by Bob Gaul

Cover art by iStockphoto.com/22781818/stocknroll

Cover design by Lisa Novak

Editing by Laura Graves

Interior flowers from Flowers Vector Designs 2010 Dover Publications, Inc.

Llewellyn Publications is an imprint of Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Chauran, Alexandra, 1981

Clearing clutter : physical, mental, spiritual / Alexandra Chauran.First Edition.

1 online resource.

Includes bibliographical references.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN 978-0-7387-4547-3ISBN 978-0-7387-4227-4 1. Orderliness. I. Title.

BJ1533.O73

131dc23

2015011163

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Llewellyn Publications

Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd.

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Manufactured in the United States of America

Contents

: Getting Started:
What Is Clutter?

: Physical Clutter:
Home, Office, Car, and Body

: Mental Clutter:
The Past and the Future

: Spiritual Clutter:
Clutter Problems, Spiritual Solutions

: Other Peoples Clutter

The simplified life is a sanctified life, much more
calm, much less strife. Oh, what wondrous truths are unveiled
Projects succeed which had previously failed.
Oh, how beautiful life can be, Beautiful simplicity.

Peace Pilgrim

Introduction

I grew up in a cluttered home. My dad was a collector by nature and identity, and our home was nicely lived-in, with strange objects from travels and adventure poking out from every shelf and corner, his quirky touch everywhere. My mothers paintings and carvings of Egyptian deities peered loftily from the walls and mantle. Pirates doubloons littered the hallway. Dad had stamps from exotic nations and military medals that were always displayed alongside photos of the recipients. One could see the stories of heroes shining in their eyes. Our surroundings were hardly the spectacle of hoarders. To me, what we had felt like homethe accumulated achievements of a family who valued travel and its associated tales of adventure.

The dusty belongings werent half of the clutter, however. Even our schedules were cluttered. Between choir practice, scouts, organized weekend group hikes, homework, and academic games, there was little time left for friendships and spirituality for any member of our family. This frenetic pace was embraced and encouraged. Even though we were not poor by any means, my father managed finances the way a rock-climber seeks the next big thrill. Last-minute bill paying and budgeting down to the dime were the norm. The inner message was that there was no room for error. No room, indeed, because everything was accounted for and our cups ran over with blessings and responsibilities.

My mother would later call this time of her life her years of rice and salt. She was paying her dues, waiting for the time when she could be retired with an open schedule and a condo furnished with minimalist IKEA furniture. Its odd to me still to think that these were hard times for her. To me they were the warm and nourishing days of childhood. The clutter formed the background noise that came to feel comfortable and safe for me. I didnt even notice that both my aunt and the mother of my best friend were hoarders, stuffing their homes and lives with belongings to disastrous effect.

When I became an adult and moved in with my husband, our merged belongings represented two lifetimes of adventure that had collided. As a young newlywed, however, I was not content with my life. My husband and I consulted with a marriage and family therapist, and were counseled on all of the challenges one would expect of a couple going through a quarter-life crisis. I confided in the counselor my hopes, dreams, and fears for the future: I wanted children, I was dissatisfied with my career and physical fitness, and both of us were disappointed with our home.

It was at that moment in the warm lighting of the therapists office that she said something to us, a revelation, that also struck me as obvious: every individual feels dissatisfied with life experience. Every life deviates from original plans. No matter how close to my goals I could get, I would still lack contentment unless I found what was truly missing. Because if at length that piece is found, then theoretically I wouldnt have any need for the rest of my desires. In other words, sometimes you only get what you want when you stop needing it so desperately.

Id like to tell you that I got up from that therapists couch, wiped the tears from my eyes, and promptly cleared up all the clutter in my life that instant. Alas, it took me years to fully understand that spirituality was the creamy center lacking in my life. And during that same period I had to begin the hard work of clearing space in my life, a concept that would have been quite foreign to me during my upbringing. It wasnt easy, and when I see friends and family struggling with clutter I feel the utmost empathy for their struggles. Im not saying that you must be religious to fill your life; that may seem too simple or too complex. However, I am saying that you need to become a seeker for that which truly matters and what is truly missing from this life that you have been so far stuffing with clutter.

This book will give you a way to start immediately defining and dealing with your lifes clutter and discover what clutter means to you on a deeper level. Well go through clearing physical and mental clutter first, starting with the material form of clutter if you are feeling buried and overwhelmed with it in your physical space. Then, well tackle the clutter as it affects your spirit. In this book, spiritual refers to any sort of deeper meaning or purpose in your life, which may include a relationship with higher powers. Connection with the universe is a thread woven throughout this book. Well find the center of simplicity in your life to which you can return, rather than resume your cluttering ways. Finally, Ill address problem of helping others clear clutter, for those of you who may be tasked with helping