Decluttering Chronicles: 40 Books & Counting

Decluttering Chronicles: 40 Books & Counting (Re-posted and revised version from my FB page)

It’s been a while since I said anything about my attempts to declutter. Yeah, I’m still at it.  I’m proud to announce that I’ve started tackling my bookshelves.  Okay, correction.  I’ve resumed tackling my bookshelves.  A couple of years ago, I donated several boxes of my son’s old baby books and children’s titles. In all honesty, I probably kept as many as I gave away.  At least one large storage container in the garage will attest to that fact.   

This time around, I’m focusing on the books in my personal collection.  I started upstairs where there are no less than 10 sets of bookshelves.  Initially, I thought the purging might prove difficult.  Some of these books I’ve had since my late teens. But once I got started, it actually felt good.  Thus far, I’ve pulled 40 titles from the shelves and filled up 2 bankers boxes.  Most of the titles are non-fiction, but more than a few fiction titles also found their way into the mix.

I think what’s helped the process, besides a little background music, is that I’m finally ready to let go.  Among the questions I asked myself as I examined each title:  Is this book a favorite?  Is it worthy of a 4-5 star rating on Good Reads?  Is there a possibility that I’ll ever read or even open this book again?  Do I have an emotional attachment to this title?

The emotional attachment question can be a tricky one.  Many of the books I have were gifted to me by folks who are now deceased.  I was about to add one title to the donation box when a card signed by a deceased friend slipped out of it. “Lori, I thought this might be something you’d enjoy.”  Yeah, I put it back on the shelf.  My plan is to sit down one day and read a few pages to see if it holds my interest. I figure it’s the least I can do in honor of my friend’s memory.  Along those same lines, I find it difficult to discard books written by authors I know.  Many of those I actually enjoy and that automatically puts them in the keeper category.

Next week, I will likely start tackling the shelves downstairs.  I’m hoping to knock out another couple of boxes.  We’ll see.