It was 9 in the morning when I went up into the attic with one goal—to check all the boxes and get rid of the unneeded things. One luggage contained mostly old bank receipts and card statements. My goodness! Why have we kept these things all these years? We should have destroyed them when we moved in!
A small bag had my ex-boyfriend's love letters during our LDR years (2003 to 2009). We tied the knot in 2010. Should I still keep them? Yes! It will be interesting to see him read them now, lol!
The next box had my diaries from 2004 until 2017 (just before we came back home from our last stint overseas). I loved writing my thoughts then, how my day went, etc. Reading some pages made me feel nostalgic, and I had a bit of a debate on my mind. Should I continue to keep them, or is it best to discard them? The latter made sense. So off they went to Dad's pit (where he burns paper trash). I don't have a shredder, so burning is the only secure way to get rid of them.
It did not even occur to me to take photos while I was sorting them out (and even while they were burning).
But what for? My online diary (here)😁
Anyway, next were the documents that were kept in one of the cabinets. I finally remembered to take some snapshots when I brought them to the living room floor—bulky folders of school docs, even our visa applications, employment contracts, Tax forms, blue books/ledgers (written records for the Tax Bureau), various certifications, and other important personal documents. I just had to check them all. I was surprised to find various duplicates (photocopies).
I must have gone to the pit four or five times. And oh boy, it felt like a baggage had been lifted off my shoulders after burning all the unnecessary stuff. Dad caught up with me and asked what's with the papers. "They are old things that we don't need," I said.
It's just crazy how we keep inessential things and allow them occupy spaces, when we should have gotten rid of them in the first place. So yeah, I know what my next chore in the next few days would be—to find more of those space-thieves in our lil abode and let them go too😅
Smile... laugh often... love more... be grateful always!
All photos are my own unless specified. 02032026/21:37ph
