Cleaning Out the Closet

When my family combined two households into one five years ago we rented a large storage unit. We weren't ready to part with our "prized" possessions. As the years passed our trips to the storage unit became more infrequent and this summer I got an idea to change a spider infested room under our backyard deck into a usable storage space.

Finally I was ready to tackle what seemed like an impossible task. I dragged out 2 dusty truckloads of lumber, wire, tubing, old inner tubes, rusted camping gear, re-bar, etc. before I could see the room's potential. Luckily I have a hardworking husband and 3 strong sons who did the next phase--removing the stored coal and spreading an inch of gravel on the floor before a cement floor was poured. After spending a few afternoons sweeping cobwebs from the rafters I was ready for the cement contractor. Our little job was not a priority so the weeks turned into months before the cement truck arrived. 

In the mean time I had plenty to do at the storage unit. Every other day I would load up the back of our pickup truck with boxes and take them home to sort through. Since I hadn't seen most of the contents of each box in five years, it wasn't hard to throw or give most of them away. When the last boxes were place in our new storage space and there was room to spare, I felt a sense of accomplishment. No more monthly bill and everything I own at my fingertips. My only regret was wondering why I hadn't done it sooner! Hopefully I have learned from this and won't put off getting rid of the "stuff" in my personal closet. Change isn't easy--but it is worth it!