I purged my closets today. I just started pulling things off the racks and off the shelves–sweaters, skirts and dresses I hadn't used in years. Why have I kept all this stuff?
Because I thought I might need it someday. You know, that someday when I desperately need a moth-eaten, misshapen cardigan sweater from 1998. Right.
And then I found a pair of teeny, tiny designer jeans. The ones I wore before I had like, five babies. I loved those jeans (still love them!) and had been keeping them around for the day when…I don't know…my hips magically shrank back to how they were in 1998? Right.
I threw the cardigan into the Donate pile and kept the jeans. Because sometimes miracles happen.
This week I've also done some soul purging. I opened my heart-closet to a trusted friend and asked them to tell me what they found. Let's just say I have some moth-eaten, misshapen cardigans taking up space in my soul. I've been hanging onto these things because, well…I might need them someday.
And while junk clothing takes up space, it also attracts moths and dust. The junk I've been keeping in my soul attracts something worse: un-forgiveness, unbelief, bitterness, envy, anxiety.
Those things aren't worth keeping around. I mean, I just don't see the day coming when I'll be like: yeah, I could totally use a little more anxiety! Or, yeah, it would be awesome to hold onto this grudge for a few more years!
My initial reaction was to get all radical and dump the whole thing. Start over from scratch. But my friend warned me against this: most people don't break free from bad habits in one day. Instead, I was advised to take little steps. Choose one small thing and tidy it up. Then see if I can maintain that one, small area.
Forgiveness, trust, belief and contentment require daily practice. It takes time to build new thoughts, new behaviors, new habits.
The journey of a million miles begins with one step. They travel best who travel lightly.
Which is just a fancy way of saying why carry an oversized diaper bag when an oversized Ziploc will do?
