what is left behind

in basements, attics, barns, garages and sheds you'll find what is forgotten, unneeded, unnecessary. or, in turn, you'll find what is being saved, stored, preserved, packed away for use at a later date. who, exactly, will use the unwanted things at a later date when some of them haven't been looked at for 20, 30, 40 years or more is anyones guess. i suppose that's where auction companies come in. and ebay. what one person can't part with, another person can and will at some time in the future. and, of course, one person's junk is another person's treasure.

i know people whose houses are full to bursting with stuff. every nook and cranny is overflowing with everything they have ever owned. a trail of magazines, checks, receipts, clothes, cheap knickknacks, some over 50 years old. they are unable to get rid of anything. on the other hand, i know people who trim their inventories regularly. their homes and outbuildings are neat and orderly, spotless, everything organized and put away, the surplus having been given away or thrown out.

my mom is one of those neat people. never ever junk all over the garage, basement, closets, floors, chairs or tables. wonderful to grow up in a house like that, but......

one day i got thinking about some glamorous party dresses my mom wore when she was in her early 30's. i remember this: i played dress-up with the dresses when she no longer had use for them. they were divine. some had pearl buttons and flouncy layers. what fun i had imagining grand grown-up parties while i was draped in those beautiful dresses.

i also got thinking about my tressy doll (her hair grew longer if you pressed a button and pulled!) and my barbie with the 3 wigs, both circa 1965. (you would have thought i'd have become a hair stylist, i practiced arranging hair so much, with my pile of dolls in constant need of new hairstyles.) my mom did some cleaning one day a long, long time ago and these things, and many others that i suddenly miss, were all given away to local charities.

cleaning up is a good thing. but can there be too much of a good thing? i do long to see those dresses and my dolls again. just see them. sort of silly, i know, and yet i wish they had been left behind....