Hefty Decisions and Not so Glad Bags.

As the days grows longer and infant leaves begin to make their pointy green presence known, we are drawn to sort, cleanse and take stock of what belongs in the present. While cleaning out the garage, closets and kitchen junk drawer, one cannot help but uncover the past which lies in wait with eyes wide open, with its fate yet to be decided. It is the past that demands effort and work, as there is little to do with what is new and fresh. No need to rake under a tree that is full of new leaves.

When a lifetime of relationships, or a relationship of a lifetime, have left tangible evidence, just what does “the stuff” say about where we have been, and more importantly, where we are? What does it mean when we choose either to keep or let it go?

Do the remains of relationships past, the poignant bookmarks, need to be evident within our present? Could the wedding portrait, that lasted longer than the marriage, be viewed as a healthy reminder of your life’s journey? Is the bitter- sweet flash of nostalgia upon coming across old love letters, marked by a sweet smile or a bruise that has never healed? Maybe old love letters have a purpose, they reflect on who you were while providing a paper trail to who you have become.

What do you do with fading bouquets, rings that are in better shape than the promises they sealed and pictures of people who no longer exist as they were? Boys and Girls, it takes courage to bridge the gap between the past and present, literally littered with clutter and precious keepsakes alike.

In times of trial by trashcan, the weak grow agitated and frustrated with the process, abandoning the cleansing rite before the calming and empowering can begin. Like most things: one box, one album, one email folder at a time. Proceed cautiously; the destination is your choice, not your destiny. Where do you really need the most space in your life right now?

Cleaning calls for gentle consistency and patience, a powerful combination, with lots of tea and cookie breaks. You are the white tornado. Be uncompromisingly honest with yourself while sticking to the cleaning schedule you have charted. Do not rush the process, or impatiently force results, that method will lead to regret. Like discarding milk, long past its sell-by-date, you know what you need to do and when you need to do it.

In the end, you will accomplish something great. You will have taken the past and brought it into the present, to be examined by the you of now. The smartest you there has ever been, the one with the clearest vision, the one who has the courage to take out the trash or the courage to keep it, for it’s own intrinsic value. A tangible object has the power to give us many different messages. It is up to us to determine what we need to hear or if we have heard enough.


Dear Miss Kitty,
My friends and I think you and “Rocket Man” make a cute couple and you should go out with him again!
Patti and Co.

Dear Patti
Thank you for the advice! It takes a “Rocket Man” to keep up with yours truly.
P.S. He is amazing!


Dear Miss Kitty
I have had an on and off again relationship with 2 different woman over the last 3 years. They know about each other and neither likes it but both of them want to be with me. It makes me happy, so is it wrong?
Joe


Dear Joe
Excuse the phrase, but we have an oxymoron here. Are you so fabulous that they REALLY both want you? Or do they each really want what they can’t have? Hmmmm, beside the fact that I am amazed you have the energy to write, I am curious that you even question if it is wrong. No one is really having a great time; listen to what you wrote, “Neither likes it”. Disclosure doesn’t imply happy acceptance, and if you care for either, or both of them, why doesn’t their lack of happiness concern you? Put on your pointy green ears, and repeat after me, “The good of the many, outweighs the good of the one”.

Have a naughty day!