It has been a long road

Taking apart my parents home has been overwhelming to say the least. All the issues with sharing items  between the three of us has been huge. After the sharing part was done then there is the selling of the items that had value or no one wanted.

The decision making process is fraught with “This was my mothers when she was a baby” or”This was mine I remember that” or “Oh this is so beautiful I love it”. If I could do the Kon Mari method of purging I would have only what I love. but alas, I am not Japanese and my ability to be disciplined is limited.

The memories are important to me. One of the last things my father said to me, as he looked over my shoulder at family pictures, “We were a happy family once”. I said “Yes dad we were very happy”. Those items and photos that let us know that we have a heritage that we had happier times are important to keep. They have meaning and relevance to who we have been , and who we are as a member of this group, called a family.

If I have words of advise, it is to stay at the sorting for as long as you can, 3-4 hours a day seemed to be about right. Then once you have done this multiple days , take a break.Come back to it with fresh eyes. You are dismantling your families life piece by piece. There is no easy way, just be gentle. My final, this helped me tip, my mantra has been “You get what you get and don’t throw a fit” This was taught to me and my son by his kindergarten teacher. Wise words to live by!

With love and peace,

All of us on Beech Hill

 

 

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Spring Clean UP

I do not know about you, but I get an itch to clean in the spring. This year my studio is my first focus. I need assistance to stay on task. My neighbor, who is the best person to assist me in this troublesome task, was willing to come over.

Today was the day to start on the studio. We actually have one section cleaned out. Some items were boxed for yard sale, some for garbage and others (the hard to let go pieces of art by my son) went into the memories box. My favorite part of today is when my neighbor said” Okay these old tubes of paint that I went through, really are dried up and they need to be given to your husband so that you will not go back through them” Here is what I want to know, how did she know that I would do that?

It is so hard to let go of little dabs of paint that could make a piece perfect..I am not sure if I am an artist but I do certainly hold onto items like all these items have a potential for an amazing collage, card or painting. Letting go, is an effort and I have to keep telling myself, that it is freeing..

Happy Spring

Happy New Beginnings

Happy Easter to all

Happiness is Loving my Life

Have you had a chance to think about the life style that you would like to lead? Was it easy to figure out the life style or do you need a little assistance? There is a wonderful visualization exercise for this from Denny Daikeler and her book “What color is your slipcover?”. page 44 -46. This is one of the best exercises.

Another great way to help you determine your lifestyle is to do go through magazies, cut out only what resonates with you. With all of these great pictures of ANYTHING that resonates with you, glue them into a large format sketch book. This is the best exercise to do, quiet no one to interrupt and indulge into time for yourself. You will find that the lace drapery at the French Cafe, with the art deco chair and a picture of a waterfall in Scotland do truly create a life style.

This is the critical part of the whole process. Don’t cut yourself short