Stop and think, if you could only keep five things from the place you live in, what would you keep? Would you choose your most valuable possessions monetarily, family heirlooms, or perhaps special memories you don’t want to lose the keepsakes from? Would you decide by their uses, their values, or perhaps by your emotional attachments?

It goes without saying that you need “stuff” in your lives. You need furniture, clothes and shoes, kitchen items, bathroom items (lots of toilet paper, it seems), and many other useful articles. These are things that make your lives comfortable and that you use regularly. Some stuff you would say you couldn’t live without.

Then there is the stuff that makes you happy. Look around you at what gives you joy when you see it. It might be gifts from that special someone, photos of happy times, or wall art that gives you a good feeling. Right now I am looking at a hand-painted card a dear friend sent me recently that I treasure. These items bring enjoyment to our homes.

Some stuff makes your living spaces attractive and pretty. The pops of color you add to your otherwise boring room livens it up. The special knickknacks that you put out help to complete the look you are going for in your living spaces. When holidays come, you might add decorations to your home to brighten it up.

Other stuff you own may be because you have emotional attachments to them. Others may not understand why you keep certain things but you have them because they evoke certain feelings. This stood out for me when I got out my box of childhood memories. It really serves no purpose other than to bring back memories of my school days. I need it for nothing but when I asked myself if I could just throw it out, I decided to put it back in storage once again. If you would be sad getting rid of something, it may be important enough to keep. I am not condoning hoarding where someone wants to keep everything because it is all important. Nor do I think it is important to save every gift someone gives you. Pick and choose what is really sentimental to you and if there is too much, choose wisely.

On the flip side, when is stuff just “stuff”? This can be stuff like paper piles that we just haven’t dealt with. It is not that we are saving them, it’s just that we haven’t taken time to go through them. What about boxes in your storage spaces that you don’t even know what is in them? Are they really important or are they just stuff you haven’t gone through and no longer use?

Too much of a good thing can be just “stuff.” For example, how many tools does one need of the same thing if they are put back after each use? How many kitchen utensils and extra pans and bowls, even sets of dishes, do we need before they are just clutter in our kitchen?

I often ask my clients I work with as a professional organizer if there is anything they miss after giving away piles of stuff. Almost always the answer is “nothing at all.” They were just getting rid of unnecessary stuff.

If you have stuff that is just stuff and not useful to you, does not make you happy, and really serves no use to you, perhaps it is time to pass it on to someone who can use it and lighten up your living spaces. But if it is something special, especially if it cannot be replaced easily such as a keepsake from a relative or friend, it may be worth holding onto until, maybe at a later date, you are ready to let it go. Enjoy the blessings you have and get rid of the useless “stuff.”

Doris Puls, of D & O Decluttering and Organizing, is a professional organizer whose mission is to make a difference in the lives of the people she works with in homes and businesses. She welcomes your stories about how you are organizing and decluttering during this time. Contact her at organizealpena@gmail.com or at 989-356-9545.