The Burden of Ability

This step is a mental step and it took me a while to organize my thinking into something I could put words to. I call it the burden of ability.

My mother wanted us kids to be busy. She made sure that there were always a variety of craft projects available to us. I learned to do many things and as an adult, I kept adding to my skill set. I picked up new and different hobbies like some folks try different restaurants. And that also required that I collect a stash of supplies, tools and references.

When I decided to simplify, I thought about what I really liked to do and the kinds of things I wanted to continue to work on. Sewing, embroidery, knitting, crochet and photography were the things that I always liked and returned to, time and again. I call them "My Big Five." I stopped working other projects and got rid of a lot of stash that went with them.

After several months with this mindset, I realized that I don't miss all the other projects. Nope. Not a bit. I have reached a level of calmness with my crafting. I don't wander through craft stores seeking something new to do. I don't even feel the need to go into a craft store much. I've got a few complex projects on the table and they are enough.

I have not even thought about going through my stash of books, tools, and supplies for My Big Five to see if there is something that I don't need. I consider them to be on an untouchable list. Truth to tell, I don't have a large yarn stash or even a large fabric stash.

By choosing what I want to do, I feel a lot less burdened about getting rid of stuff associated with what I don't want to do. The things that I held on to 'just in case' are things I can't imagine using again. Now I need to figure out the most effective way of getting rid of them.