Whew – coming up for a breather here.  We finally have everyone’s bedrooms moved to best fit the number and ages of children at home. This monumental job has unearthed a tremendous volume of worn out  and outgrown clothing, wrappers, papers, games with missing pieces and general junk. My own closet was just as bad and when it was all said and done FIVE garbage bags of old clothes were trucking on down to Goodwill. I didnt actually wear all those clothes but I do feel guilty tossing freebies.  Still, most of it didn’t fit well nor look good and I feel much more than 5 bags ‘lighter’ with the newfound space. I don’t know why I felt the need to hold onto this so long.

Mrs. Catherine has a blogpost today that made me think about all the ways we weigh ourselves down.  We have talked many times, friends and I, about burdens. Lots of things bear down upon us even when we think we are being very careful.  Like with our closets it is hard to know what is worth keeping and what should go. She suggests using your heart as your guide. If your heart is truly not in it, don’t do it:

I have found
> that when I have had to "force" something it never
> turns out good and that there are reasons for my
> feeling that way.  Quite simply…it means that I
> should not be doing it! 

Nope. Never.

While she felt good about the initial decisions she mentions the fear that goes along with them, namely, what will people think?  Because they do you know.  Think, that is.  We all think far too much about what everyone else is doing when it really has so little bearing on our own lives. It is hard enough to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit guiding us towards the things that ‘we’ should be doing. I am sure we cannot hear what He is saying to anyone else.

I hope she finds the peace she seeks. I hope to see my studio/schoolroom boxed and labeled. : )  I hope to have a loooong bubble bath this weekend and think happy thoughts.