Send me your letters to clutter. Does this sound like you?
You’re standing in front of your desk, staring at the stacks of paper, frustrated and overwhelmed. “Why are you still here? Why can’t you find a file to climb into and make yourself available when I need you? Somewhere in there is the invoice I’m trying to get paid for – how will I ever get paid if I can’t even find the invoice?”
You open the closet door and glare at the contents. “I hate you and I love you. Ugh, how am I ever supposed to make this closet work when a bunch of you don’t fit, some of you I don’t even like and I don’t even know what’s at the back?!”
Your youngster is finally in bed and hopefully soon asleep. You return to the family room and flop into the chair realizing you can’t even walk on the floor any longer because of the piles and piles of toys. “Just put yourselves away, why don’t you! [bctt tweet=”Can’t you find a nice basket or box and do the Mary Poppins thing – jumping right into them?” username=”@wellrich”] And while you are at it, sort yourselves out and take the toys that no one has played with for the past 6 months to the donation centre. I’m going to bed.”
If you’ve ever talked to your clutter, or think you might like to say something to it, I’d like to hear from you. Consider writing a letter or letters to clutter and tell it how you really feel.
Why Letters to Clutter?
You letter or letters to clutter will be considered for inclusion in a project being published later this year. Your letter doesn’t need to be long, 200 – 400 words is perfect although longer or shorter is also welcome. Start your letter off with “Dear ________ (item or items of clutter i.e. Paper, Baby Clothes, Garden Tools), What am I going to do with you?” and tell the clutter what you are really thinking.
Types of Clutter
Your clutter might include one of the following items or you might have your own version of clutter.:
- Costume jewelry
- Inherited jewelry
- Inherited dishes, flatware, glass/crystal
- Paper
- Sports equipment
- Particular sports equipment e.g. A bag of balls, an old croquet set, a bag of hockey equipment
- Clothes that don’t fit
- Clothes that aren’t liked
- Clothes in general
- Childhood books
- Memorabilia
- Photographs
- Someone else’s items e.g. a spouse’s sports gear, clothes or other items
- Tools
- Leftover renovation material e.g. tiles, paint, fabric
- Craft goods
How and Where to Send you Letters to Clutter
Identify yourself only by your initials and your town of residence. Individuals will not be identified in their submissions and any particular identifying information will be removed.
Send letters to me, Carolyn Caldwell at [email protected].
Looking forward to receiving your letter or letters to clutter and seeing what you have to say to those trinkets collecting dust on the shelf.
When my girls were little, I remember wishing I could wiggle my nose like Samantha from “Bewitched” and have it all disappear. I would have had a few choice words to say to them. Some of the toys I really didn’t like, typically because they made an annoying sound. How about “wouldn’t you really be happier in another home?”
What an interesting idea? What are you going to do with all the letters to clutter?