Yard Sale - A Journey in Minimalism

A couple weekends ago, I was a part of a yard sale with some friends. It was fun, exhausting and I only made $10.50. But while sitting and chatting were the easy parts. Picking out what to sell was not, at least not near the end anyways.

Remember things can be replaced, people can’t.

I had hoarded somethings from my dumpster diving days, a couple months back. My intention to put the items online to sell. But that never happened. Months went by, the items unmoved, untouched. These were easy things to part with. Then in came some knick knacks, some outdated decor, a book or two. But there was one area that made me nervous. My jewelry.

Take a breath in… Things can be replaced, people can not.

I’ve always had a hard time sorting through my jewelry. I think I’ve always believed there was this stigma that you didn’t throw out or donate jewelry. Not unless 3 things happened. 

1.It was broken and/or unfixable

2.You were going through stages 

Example: child stage, teen stage, adult

3.You died

My jewelry rarely broke, because I rarely wore it. And my stages in life, I feel never hit those walls. Like BAM! Now you only like adult jewelry. I’ve kept jewelry my grandma gave me in grade school. I’ve always felt obligated to keep it. As it sat in a box untouched for 20 years. I think I only wore it once. 

Breath out… Things can be replaced, people can’t. 

I repeated that mantra over and over as I grabbed for boxed up necklaces and old earring. I never wore any of it once, but always felt strongly obligated to keep. Old holiday earrings I told myself I would wear every year. Old goth chokers I bought in high school, but the right outfit never came along. Pieces that I told myself I would sell years ago, but never did. But going through that jewelry wasn’t as hard as going through the pieces my fiancé has given me over the years. 9 whole years. 

I had been nervous about asking about it. Sometimes he can have more sentimental value to things then I do. But surprisingly this was not one of them. So I collected a couple necklaces and rings, but I kept some more recent pieces. And with that I was done, though I feel more jewelry could go at some point. 

At the end of it all I had 3 brown bags full and 2 boxes of stuff. I loved seeing it all go out of my apartment. I had freed up space by my sofa, on my dresser and in my closet. And while I hardly sold anything, that stuff never came back to the apartment. We dropped it all off at the donation center right after. I have yet to feel any regret. How can you feel regret for something you never used? 

Remember things can be replaced, people can’t. 

And as I say that one last time, I can see there are 2 more big brown bags full of stuff and a pair of old hiking shoes by my sofa. Waiting to get dropped off at that donation center.