phew. what a day. Last week started THE GREAT PURGE in our house. This year we are [hopefully] adding a master bedroom suite over our garage, and I *may* be getting a bathtub that I can sit and soak in. Which means we need to prepare for construction to start in May. Which means cleaning out the basement so we can put garage stuff there, AND cleaning out the garage of ALL THE STUFF that we have accumulated in almost 10 years.
wow. we moved here in 2011 from a 800 sq ft apartment and no garage to a 1400 sq ft house. and we almost completely filled it. Within 4 months of moving in two grandparents died and we inherited lots of furniture to furnish our new home. Annnd it was full. We’re just now figuring out what pieces to keep and what we can let go of emotionally. My husband is WAY better at it than I am.
A bit before we moved here, my dog, Cody died of renal failure. She came to live with me when I was 26 and died when I was 39. We haven’t had a dog in our lives since. She was 14 years old; she and I had MANY adventures together. She was my best confidant for the whole time we were together. Today I finally was able to let go of her old belongings: her beds, her toys, her leashes and everything else. I was not prepared for the flood of emotions when I opened the box of her things and. it. smelled. just. like. her. After 10 years of being in storage. I sat and cried. But finally realized that letting go of things wasn’t the same as letting go of her.
As a mom I learned part of my job is to help my son work through his big emotions. Its ok to be sad and cry and feel all the feels. So as I sat on the floor of my basement, that mom-person in my head kicked in and I heard ‘its ok to be sad, you miss her. Let go of the dusty things. She will be with you even without the things.” And this time I listened, and let go of the items that were doing no one any good stashed in a plastic bin collecting dust. I kept one item, the towel my grandmother got for her ‘grand-dog’ that was monogrammed with Cody’s name. The rest was either donated or trashed depending on the condition.
I came upstairs, grabbed my Acceptance oil, and slathered myself in it. The main note of this oil is geranium, and geranium is one of my favorites. It’s also the main scent in the joy blend. I find it hard to be sad when smelling this oil. In this case of letting go, I felt that by using it, my emotions settled down to a level where I could acknowledge them, sit with them for a moment and then let them pass. And once I was able to let them pass I felt a bit lighter.
What helps you when you are overwhelmed with big feelings? How do you acknowledge those feelings when they come upon you as a surprise? Have you use an oil to help?
