Clearing the Cobwebs

“The first step in crafting the life you want is to get rid of everything you don't.” ― Joshua Becker

I've been feeling stuck in my life these past few weeks. It's more difficult than usual to find the motivation to do the things I usually love. Everything feels a bit stagnant and stale. It's time to get things moving, to shake things up. Where to start, though? How can I jump start the energy of newness and freshness?

A few years ago, I read about a 9 day feng shui challenge in Marci Shimoff's newsletter. She suggested getting rid of 27 things a day for 9 days in a row as a way to clear out old energy and bring in some new juice. (By getting rid of, she means donate, recycle, gift, or put away in its proper place, which -- I have learned -- is not a pile on the kitchen counter.) I have periodically played with this technique as a way of brightening up my living space. It's amazing how the act of clearing clutter from my physical space helps me clear the cobwebs from between my ears, or how releasing the catalogs I'll never read translates into releasing relationships that no longer serve me. As above, so below, they say. As within, so without.

And so, I began again today. I donated 27 beautiful art books to a local school. I'm sure they will get used there, rather than sitting untouched for another ten years. Now I have a nice open expanse of bookshelf for the pottery that has lived in boxes for the nine years I've lived in this house. I love that pottery. I've collected it with love over the course of my lifetime. And now there is room in my life to enjoy it, because I was willing to let go. I was willing to release the good to make room for the great.

I invite you to join me with your own 9 day adventure. Let's see what gets released, and how much better our lives will work without the extra baggage.