Clutter is one of the most significant markers of modern life. It is a relatively new phenomenon that our ancestors didn’t have to deal with because…they had less stuff. I learned in an Anthropology class years ago that your average prehistoric person could fit everything they owned from the time of their birth to the time of their death in a bindle. Granted, they died at 30, but still! 

I am lucky to have somewhat conquered my spatial stuffing tendencies. I used to collect everything and stuff it everywhere. Then, I got addicted to space and never looked back. I love relatively bare walls, and having somewhere I can roll around on the floor.

The one area of my life where clutter has a stranglehold on me is in my mind. I hoard ideas. To be fair, I write, so it may go with the territory. But, sadly, the tendency is made worse by shyness and a reluctance to share and have my ideas exposed. I want to conquer this too. Its why I’m doing Bloganuary.

I wonder if mental clutter is ALSO a version of the physical clutter in modern times. What, really, did folks thousands of years ago have to consider? Were they all “complicated”, like so many of us now? I sometimes wonder if I lived in a place with more open sky, fewer lights, fewer everythings, if I’d be content to clear my brain out every night, maybe just filling it with the stars above. Food for thought.

Bloganuary writing prompt

Where can you reduce clutter in your life?

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