Last August I was going to a prayer service and the “price of admission” was to bring some school supplies for children attending inner city schools. See Purging for a Cause #1 It was an easy and painless way to clear extra filler paper, markers, glue, and folders from our home. Tomorrow I’m going to a Civic Dinner at a local church and in addition to stimulating conversation, the Food for the Journey website mentioned that they could use plastic silverware, napkins, foam plates and cups for the weekly meals they host for the neighbors in this low income area. We’ve avoided buying anything styrofoam for awhile for environmental reasons, but we still had quite a few of the other items stored for – I don’t know what – since we try to use washable silverware and plates. I found:
275 paper napkins (We now use cloth napkins that can be washed.)- 250 plastic knives, forks, and spoons
The website also said that they could use coloring books and crayons to amuse the children during their weekly soup kitchen meals. So I’m taking
- 3 coloring books
- Half of our stash of crayons (Gotta save some for the grand kids 🙂 )
The moral of the story is: Watch for opportunities where others will provide you with a way to declutter.
I was short of time and didn’t want to figure out where to take these items, By just keeping my eyes and ears alert, others provide the occasion for decluttering and I feel lighter. It’s not always this easy, but hey! not every pruning project has to be a burden.
