Wooden-Wheeled Duckie

Junk! We all have it! (Don't lie, you KNOW you have it too!) It is scattered throughout my house in every room and closet and mostly in my basement. It's even managed it's way into my shed. The only reason there's no junk in my car is because I must always save room for transporting all that hockey equipment back and forth to the rink; otherwise, there'd be unnecessary junk in there too! Hey, was that an oxymoron? Unnecessary junk. Is there such a thing as Necessary Junk? Maybe. I have been looking around my house and noticing areas that have clutter (that is, if I can actually see the clutter amongst all the dust and dog hair!). I decided that I need to get my butt in gear and do some purging on these clutter areas.

Last summer I was coming across many items in my home that I don't use anymore. There were also toys and games and puzzles, etc. that the boys have outgrown. I didn't think I had bought the kids many Happy Meals over the years, but the tote full of toddler toys indicated that we visited Ronald McDonald on a fairly regular basis. So I hauled all this stuff out to the lawn for a yard sale. I had no idea how to price things, so I put out a sign: "$1". It only took one day to realize how time consuming it is to have a yard sale, especially when this stuff was, in my opinion, "junk". Too good for the Milford Dump, but not good enough to keep shuffling around in my home. So I put a sign out: "EVERYTHING FREE". Hokey-Dinah!!!! Stuff disappeared over the next few weeks.....people actually WANTED some of my garbage treasures. One fellow found an old frying pan I had placed out there. I was fully expecting to take it to the dump once the "treasure hunt" had well served it's time. All the Teflon had worn off and it was completely useless. Well, just as the guy was leaving, Jon was pulling into the driveway from taking Jake to barn chores. This fellow grinned from ear to ear, raising his new-found treasure with one hand in triumphant victory whilst waving to Jon with the other! He was so delighted with his find! Jon walked in the house laughing and saying, "I can't believe the stuff you're getting rid of.....and people actually WANT it!"

So today I decided I need to clean the closet in the office, which was originally the children's toy room. I opened the door, looked in, sighed, shut the door. Enough for today! [sigh] I don't want to tackle it. But as I glanced around, I saw a little ol' wooden duck with red wheels and a red pull string. I had bought this for Blake when he was just a baby. The wheels are offset so that the little duckie waddles when you pull him across the floor. Now....here's the problem..... is Mr. Duckie "junk"? At 18 years old, I cannot see Blake having the desire to walk around with Mr. Duckie. But at the same time, I cannot see me putting him out at the roadside edge (Mr. Duckie, not Blake). I just can't do it. People! Listen to me! I have Fraser blood in me! You don't get rid of anything because someday you might need it! I am telling you, and history proves this, that if I get rid of that duck, within a matter of a few weeks or months, I will have a reason to use that duck. Sounds stupid, I know. But....Fraser blood.

So what am I supposed to do with that Duckie and the hundreds of other items in that category? I am told you need piles when purging your clutter: Keep; Give Away; Throw Away. So now I need a pile called "Ohhhhh, what do I do with THIS?" Once I get started, I'm sure it will get easier, but I have a feeling that I'll be calling Janna who is the Queen of Totes and asking her where the best deals are because I need to efficiently store some "junk" for another thirty or forty years.

I think I hang on to some junk in my head too. There are some things that I just can't let go of, yet God tells me to let them go. Anger, bitterness, ooooh---do I dare say 'revenge'??? It's junk! It's not doing any good in me, yet I hold on to it for some stupid reason...pulling it out every once in a while and reverting back to my "oh poor me" moments. I need to put those feelings and emotions on the roadside curb and let God have them. He asks me for them, but obviously I'm not really serious about completely giving them over to Him. Ephesians 4:31-32 says, "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

I need to get rid of the junk and clutter in my life, physically AND mentally. Oh Lord, give me strength.... and the desire.... and the ambition..... and the right attitude! I sense a Spring cleaning coming on......and it's only February!