Life is hard enough without adding more weight than I
need to carry – literally. Why do I pack my purse and my tote with so much
just-in-case-I-need-it stuff? Some of those necessities never see daylight, so
why do I insist on carrying it around?
I look at my husband. When we head out on errands, he
has car keys and a wallet. I have my purse loaded with a year’s worth of
survival gear. Why?
A week ago I woke with a horrific stiff neck. The
pain moved down from the base of my skull and into my left shoulder. This is
where I carry all of my tension and the arm I use to carry my work tote. Yes,
the one loaded with more survival gear than the purse.
Spurred on by the discomfort of my knotted muscles, I
cleaned house. I simplified everything down to what I actually used on a daily
basis and pulled out everything else. I think I removed ten about pounds of stuff
from the purse and the tote. At least it feels like it.
From that point, I thought about all the other
baggage I carry around and decided an
emotional and spiritual house cleaning was in order as well. Oh, I have done
sporadic spring cleaning before, but I had not delved quite this deep. It was
time. I needed to learn better ways of handling stress, or at least
consistently practice the ones I knew.
