Page 66 - Flathead Living // Spring 2015

HOME INTERIORS BY MEREDITH COOPMAN
Simplify Your Life
Eliminating clutter will add to your peace of mind
A s I sit down to write this article, it is so unseasonably warm outside this February afternoon that I find it fitting to write about spring cleaning for the spring
publication. I’m not talking about the kind of deep cleaning you’re probably thinking of. Although it is a good idea to move the sofa and vacuum underneath from time to time, I’m think- ing more in terms of organization and clearing your house- hold of the unnecessary clutter. The buzz word of the season – declutter! There is a movement of people waging a private battle against their own stuff. The idea of living a simplified, uncluttered life with less stuff will not only clear your space, but free your mind and enhance your prosperity as well. There are many benefits of owning fewer possessions: less to clean, less debt, less to organize, less stress, more freedom, more time, more clarity. It’s just a matter of getting there in this
consumer-based world we live in. It’s a mindset.
I am fortunate to have a career that I love. Yet it comes with consequences. I consider myself a pretty busy mom. That’s not a bad thing and I’m not complaining. In fact, I wouldn’t have it any other way. It does mean that I am constantly rushing from one thing to another and have little time to keep my household in check. Being this busy means that something has to suffer. For me, it’s my house. There are some days when I leave in the morning after the usual “get to school on time chaos,” think- ing that if someone were to walk into my kitchen they would
think we had been robbed and kidnapped.
It’s hard to resist the decluttering fever, especially when we
are rewarded with an orderly and meaningful state of mind. Sounds heavenly to this working mom. According to Marie Kondo’s “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” the
64 FLATHEAD LIVING | SPRING 2015
SHUTTERSTOCK PHOTOS