Holding Space for Sentimental
/Holding Space for Sentimental
When you carry out the KonMari process with your belongings, it is typical to encounter sentimental items as you process the Clothing, Books, Papers, and Komono categories. Common examples of sentimental and memorabilia include t-shirts from college, wedding gowns, childhood books, love letters and greeting cards, photos, and “heirloom” household items or artwork.
As you encounter each item, you may be overcome with memories and emotions and temped to pause the process in order to reminisce. However, the KonMari method advises to set aside every sentimental item you come across, to be addressed as it’s own and very last category and given your full attention with sharpened “joy checking” skills. In this way, you are faced with the opportunity to really take time and hold space for your decisions and emotions with each sentimental item.
Here are some possible outcomes for you to keep in mind when considering the future of your sentimental belongings:
You feel ready to let go of the item, and therefore dispose of it accordingly (trash, recycle, donate, sell, gift)
You wish to keep the item but need to preserve it better (acid free photo album, photo or art digitization, climate controlled storage, etc)
You have a small amount of sentimental items to keep that don’t need special preservation (these can be kept in a keepsake box or container and stored in your closet or other location)
You identify items that you would like to keep because they bring you so much joy to experience them and therefore make a plan to incorporate them into your daily life (display on wall or in a case, use as household object, etc)
You identify items that you love and want to keep, but don’t serve a purpose in their original form (consider repurposing projects - such as making a quilt out of t-shirts, sewing a new clothing item out of special fabric, using a chipped coffee mug as a pen holder, etc)
