Murphy's Law and my Stuff

Elton John is not one of my heroes. Never did I expect to be influenced in any way by him. But recently he made a lot of sense. He sold his "cast offs" for a measly $8,500,000 so that he would have room in his house for the new things he wants to acquire. That gave me an idea. Not that I expect to get $8.5 million for mine, but I too have some things to cast off.

Some corollary of Murphy's Law says that that which has been removed from a given space cannot be returned to that space without something being left over. To me, house cleaning is a necessary evil, destined to be postponed as long as possible, but recently I was forced to face that chore. While everything was torn up and the cupboards were bare, the reality of Murphy struck me. There was just no way I could stuff everything back where it had been, and I decided I really don't want it to. Me and Elton!

My generation has a hang-up about THINGS. We tend to think that if our mothers or grandmothers enjoyed something, it is incumbent on us to enjoy it too and to keep it forever. This idea has some merit, I suppose. It is part of Tevye's much valued Tradition in Fiddler on the Roof.

But I probably don't have enough years left that I can afford to spend them looking backward. Families now are often separated geographically and those of us in the "older generation" are faced with creating our own life styles and enjoying life in our own ways. We have our own taste and have acquired the things we want to live with.

Too many of us have allowed our homes to become depositories for things we think maybe our kids will want some day. The heirlooms are carefully put away and never used and seldom seen (except for an occasional polishing). Meanwhile, most of our children are off doing their own thing, probably earning more than we ever did, and are busy acquiring their own heirlooms. Even as my taste isn't the same as my mother's, theirs isn't the same as mine. Thank goodness. I raised them to be independent thinkers.

What do? The mother of a friend of mine has one answer. "I'm going to keep this stuff forever so you can figure out what to do with it after I'm gone. After all, that's what my mother did to me."

I prefer the daughter's answer. "Get rid of it. Your children will bless you."

We all have possessions that have great personal meaning to us, things we ourselves have collected through the years. These are the things to save and cherish. These should be our collection. These are the things, which will take up space in my house.

I am about to be very brutal, call my favorite antique dealer, and eliminate a lot of things that I really don't need any more. It is a sad process, of course, not unlike having a tooth pulled.

But while I truly hate to say good-by to the symbols of a way of life long gone, the reality is in my memory. And it doesn't take up any room. Anybody willing to pay me eight and a half mil for my stuff?