Comments on: Letting Go of “Stuff” http://tiaracoaching.com/community/tiarablog/letting-go-of-stuff/ Exceptional Women's Coaching Thu, 02 Feb 2012 23:37:07 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Laura Berger http://tiaracoaching.com/community/tiarablog/letting-go-of-stuff/comment-page-1/#comment-518 Laura Berger Wed, 30 Jun 2010 21:33:20 +0000 http://tiaracoaching.com/?p=1965#comment-518 "Less is More" has been my motto for the last 3 years, but it did not come easily. In 2006 I piled my entire condo into a 10x10 storage unit to move to Costa Rica. I mourned every minute of it. I was leaving my home and my precious belongings. It was not until I returned a year later and went to storage that I realized that many of my precious belongings had become stuff. I began to purge much of it. A weight lifted off of me. We moved back into our condo comfortably and not cluttered. It was moving back into our condo (and my experience living in Costa Rica) when I realized less is more was a motto here to stay. “Less is More” has been my motto for the last 3 years, but it did not come easily.

In 2006 I piled my entire condo into a 10×10 storage unit to move to Costa Rica. I mourned every minute of it. I was leaving my home and my precious belongings.

It was not until I returned a year later and went to storage that I realized that many of my precious belongings had become stuff.

I began to purge much of it. A weight lifted off of me. We moved back into our condo comfortably and not cluttered.

It was moving back into our condo (and my experience living in Costa Rica) when I realized less is more was a motto here to stay.

]]> By: Franciska http://tiaracoaching.com/community/tiarablog/letting-go-of-stuff/comment-page-1/#comment-477 Franciska Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:31:00 +0000 http://tiaracoaching.com/?p=1965#comment-477 What a wonderful food for thought! Thank you Alison for sharing about your "stuff around stuff". As for me I become aware of my own dancing around stuff being both important to have(determining who/what I am, how I feel) and completely unimportant. There are two extremes. There is a part in me that is (over)specialised towards such detachment that I easily believe that I am free as a bird, finding it possible to live anywhere anyhow and be happy with very little, as it is the relationship with people around me that I value most and that it is the feeling of love and connection that I consider as true purpose in life. At these times, from a profound feeling of contentment and the knowing that "all is well" I can find it difficult to even determine goals truly worthwile to pursue, stuff truly worthwile to have... If it wasn't for people around me to help stirr me up, I would still live a very simple life. I also recognize the other side, of having gathered a lot of stuff, some good but also too much in many ways, and then getting caught in some sort of "responsibility trap" that I have to take care of "it" for eternity. Thanks for reminding me that it is not "either/or" but that is the playful game of gathering and releasing that adds to a fulfilling life! One more thing: today I went to pick up my new passport. I deliberately left the old one behind (the one with all the nice and colourful stamps of different countries, those memories of great places and people) and only took the new one with me. This felt funny in a nice way, to leave some "old identity" behind and take on a refreshed one, that's playfully forward looking! And what I intend to do for the coming days is establish a practice of letting go of one piece of stuff every day. Thank you all! What a wonderful food for thought! Thank you Alison for sharing about your “stuff around stuff”. As for me I become aware of my own dancing around stuff being both important to have(determining who/what I am, how I feel) and completely unimportant. There are two extremes. There is a part in me that is (over)specialised towards such detachment that I easily believe that I am free as a bird, finding it possible to live anywhere anyhow and be happy with very little, as it is the relationship with people around me that I value most and that it is the feeling of love and connection that I consider as true purpose in life. At these times, from a profound feeling of contentment and the knowing that “all is well” I can find it difficult to even determine goals truly worthwile to pursue, stuff truly worthwile to have… If it wasn’t for people around me to help stirr me up, I would still live a very simple life. I also recognize the other side, of having gathered a lot of stuff, some good but also too much in many ways, and then getting caught in some sort of “responsibility trap” that I have to take care of “it” for eternity. Thanks for reminding me that it is not “either/or” but that is the playful game of gathering and releasing that adds to a fulfilling life!

One more thing: today I went to pick up my new passport. I deliberately left the old one behind (the one with all the nice and colourful stamps of different countries, those memories of great places and people) and only took the new one with me. This felt funny in a nice way, to leave some “old identity” behind and take on a refreshed one, that’s playfully forward looking!

And what I intend to do for the coming days is establish a practice of letting go of one piece of stuff every day. Thank you all!

]]> By: Lee http://tiaracoaching.com/community/tiarablog/letting-go-of-stuff/comment-page-1/#comment-472 Lee Tue, 22 Jun 2010 17:30:18 +0000 http://tiaracoaching.com/?p=1965#comment-472 Following along with the prevalence of "stuff" in our lives and the contrast between owning and sharing... I was chatting with a partner the other day, appreciating the ingenuous nature of our public libraries. Rather than owning walls of books, we have access to almost any book we want, because they are shared. If you think further, consider public transit vs. auto ownership, apartment/condo dwelling vs. building more and more single houses (to feed the next boom and bust cycle). The drive toward ownership separates us, increases energy consumption and environmental waste and fuels our addiction to the stuff. Here's to letting go - one piece of stuff at a time! Following along with the prevalence of “stuff” in our lives and the contrast between owning and sharing…
I was chatting with a partner the other day, appreciating the ingenuous nature of our public libraries. Rather than owning walls of books, we have access to almost any book we want, because they are shared. If you think further, consider public transit vs. auto ownership, apartment/condo dwelling vs. building more and more single houses (to feed the next boom and bust cycle). The drive toward ownership separates us, increases energy consumption and environmental waste and fuels our addiction to the stuff.
Here’s to letting go – one piece of stuff at a time!

]]> By: Beth http://tiaracoaching.com/community/tiarablog/letting-go-of-stuff/comment-page-1/#comment-465 Beth Tue, 22 Jun 2010 03:31:13 +0000 http://tiaracoaching.com/?p=1965#comment-465 Alison, I too am moving and have gone through a similar process. One of our partners gave me a book to read, The Necklace, by Cheryl Jarvis. There is a great quote in the book I think is perfect: " . . . Ownership is over rated.We should elevate sharing. Wealth is individual but sharing is collective. We are not what we own. We are what we do and who we help, and the difference we make in the world. Sometimes we think that by sharing we give something up but in reality the more we shared The Necklace, the more profound the experience became. By sharing we've gotten so much more." In our move I have come to realize that my house does not make my home . . . my home is wherever my husband and I live and where we welcome our sons back with love. Our home is simply changing as our lives change . . . and letting go of something we owned for over 25 years has been interesting. A both- and. Both emotional and exciting. Some one asked me if I was sad -- and NO, I'm not, but I am emotional about it all. Because of the memories I have . . . and those I can hold on to with joy in my heart. The stuff is truly meaningless to me. Alison, I too am moving and have gone through a similar process. One of our partners gave me a book to read, The Necklace, by Cheryl Jarvis. There is a great quote in the book I think is perfect:

” . . . Ownership is over rated.We should elevate sharing. Wealth is individual but sharing is collective. We are not what we own. We are what we do and who we help, and the difference we make in the world. Sometimes we think that by sharing we give something up but in reality the more we shared The Necklace, the more profound the experience became. By sharing we’ve gotten so much more.”

In our move I have come to realize that my house does not make my home . . . my home is wherever my husband and I live and where we welcome our sons back with love. Our home is simply changing as our lives change . . . and letting go of something we owned for over 25 years has been interesting. A both- and. Both emotional and exciting. Some one asked me if I was sad — and NO, I’m not, but I am emotional about it all.
Because of the memories I have . . . and those I can hold on to with joy in my heart. The stuff is truly meaningless to me.

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