Fifteen years ago when we decided to remodel our house in Arkansas, I was really excited to get more closet space. I know it's a silly thing to get excited about. You see, back then, I loved catalogs. I loved gadgets. I loved to order things. I was a sucker for a clearance sale. This was our first house and I wanted to decorate it and fill it full of nice things. And useful gadgets. Unfortunately, I'm not very good at decorating and I ended up with a lot of stuff that I had absolutely no use for. It all ended up in the closet. Or the garage.
When we decided to move back to South Dakota, it took me months to clear out all of the closets. I am not exaggerating. I swore the next house we had would not have any closets. Little did I realize, when we finally found a house to rent in Hill City, that would be almost true. When we moved in, we discovered there was only one closet in the whole house, unless you count the tiny one under the staircase. It was an apparent after thought that was added to the upstairs bedroom. How did we miss that little detail when we agreed to rent it? We ended up putting a lot of stuff in storage, and I had to be creative with the storage of the things we actually used from time to time. All of my stuff became a big thorn in my side. Ok, so maybe I didn't mean it about the closets.
I have a hard time parting with things if there is any use at all left in them. I guess I got that from my parents. I used to get upset when someone broke a dish or a glass or a knick knack. Now I do a little cheer because I get to throw it away. It's a process. It's been 10 years. I still have too much stuff.
Eventually, we found a house in Hill City to buy. Yes, it has closets, but not too many. And yes, they are all full. I really don't need any more "stuff". So, you wonder why I am writing about all of this? Well.....Christmas is coming. People are out shopping for gifts. Some of them might be for me or for people like me. I want to make a suggestion. Instead of buying us more "stuff", how about cleaning out your own closets. Sell your treasures on Ebay Giving Works. Donate the proceeds to Black Hills Habitat for Humanity. If that's too much trouble, you could just make a cash donation. We'll use the money to build a house for a deserving family. And yes, I promise it will have closets.
http://blackhillshabitat.org/Events/project-77.html Click on the widget to donate to Project 77.
To sell your items on Ebay: http://ebaygivingworks.com/ Choose Black Hills Area Habitat for Humanity. It's easy. And it will make a difference.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
