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The Key To Sentimental Items As A Minimalist

Being a minimalist doesn’t mean that you can’t have any sentimental items. However, depending on how minimalist you prefer to be, there are ways to reduce them.

Why Have Fewer Sentimental Items?

Being a minimalist doesn't mean that you can't have any sentimental items.  But you don't have to keep everything!

Some people may wonder why you might want to downsize the number of sentimental items you keep in the first place.

Really this is personal preference. However, we generally keep items that we consider sentimental either out of a sense of guilt or obligation or because we want to trigger certain memories.

If an item causes bad feelings when you handle it, why not just let it go? Our experiences make us who we are, even the hard ones.

You don’t need to feel obligated to keep something if it doesn’t truly spark good feelings for you.

Perhaps there is someone else in your life who may feel happier to have that item in your life.

If you have sentimental items that just aren’t as important to you any more, it’s okay to let those go.

We are constantly changing. We are not the same people we used to be. And that’s okay.

Who you were is still part of who you are.

You don’t need to fill your home with relics of the past that aren’t useful to who you are now.

You can make that space in your life and in your home for something that may be of more use or meaning to you in this moment of your life.

What To Do With Things You Love?

Well, what about those things that you have and want that spark great memories?

Use them!

I do not have a box of keepsakes, a cedar chest, or a pile of items in my garage that have moved throughout my life with me.

I want these treasures of my past and history to be a part of my now.

I incorporate them into my home decor. I use them as practical day to day items.

Is it a little sad if sometimes these things get worn out? Sure. But I have days and days of happy memories, and usually lots of pictures too.

If something is meaningful to you, it deserves a meaningful place in your daily life.

I sleep under the quilt I was given as a wedding present. I light candles in the handmade candle holder from a good family friend.

The wooden cat from one grandmother lives in my window sill where my kids can admire (but not touch).

An Oklahoma rose rock from my other grandmother sits delicately next to the comb I use daily.

Objects have the meaning that we assign to them. You can choose to use useful and beautiful sentimental items in your day to day life to help you remember the times and people that you value.

There are many items I could keep in my life but I choose not to. I exist as a the culmination of my experiences.

Each object and time is part of who I am. Even if I don’t still own a particular item, that doesn’t mean it’s not part of who I am in this moment.

And like the saying goes, when everything is important, nothing is.

What’s important for you?

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