As I am preparing to move to the new house, I have been going through my belongings and finding things that I didn’t even know I possessed. The hardest part thus far has been going through and identifying things that I no longer have any use for. For example, I recently went through my collection of audio tapes that I had accumulated throughout my adolescent years. I no longer even listen to these tapes as I don’t have a tape player in my car or in my room yet I have held on to these tapes as a cherished possession. As I was going through them, I realized that there were some tapes that I probably have never listened to nor ever will yet I have been reluctant to throw them away. After deliberating for about an hour, I did manage to clean out this collection to only keep the ones that I liked at this point in time. This might seem an insignificant thing yet it was very tough to do; more so than sorting out clothes that one never wears.
Another example is a pen holder wooden plate that I made in ‘shop class’ while in middle school. The pen holder is broken yet I cherish this possession as a medal of sort because I recall the time I spent carving and smoothing the wood to make this. The fact that this is the only object that I have ever made with my hands and will most likely not do so ever again may have something to do with it.
This has made me question the tendency of holding on to objects that we no longer need or use. Is this merely a form of ‘nesting’ that we share with other animals or is it more because we associate memories and feelings with these objects?
4 comments:
It's mostly about holding on to things, but it helps us remember previous moments - similar to photographs.
You are completely opposite of me when it comes to throwing things away. I pretty much throw everything away. If i haven't used something in six mths, i throw it away. Me and my nani fight over this all the time because she claims that eventually we will end up using it but my motto is that if i haven't used it in so long, then i doubt i ever will. i don't really associate my past with items but i do associate my past with music. Songs can take me back to the exact time when I was really into that song e.g. Rangeela re song reminds me of the time i started college and I used to go to the indian store on Mayfair religiously...lol..lol. Soldier soldier reminds me of you and us practicing the dance together at your house in 2 hours straight...lol.
Oh one thing i don't throw away are books. I keep them even if i don't read them all the time. Reason for that is because I eventually plan on having a library whenever i have my own house inshallah. And yeah i'd marry the Beast if it meant getting a library like the one in Beauty and the Beast.
LOL@marry the Beast for his library. I am sure he will deeply appreciate the fact that you married him for his books......haha
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