Packing Precious Memories: Deciding What To Hang On To

There are plenty of reasons to downsize when you are moving. It saves you the hassle of packing some of your stuff, and it insures that you will have space in your new home. However, you don’t have to toss everything that is unessential. Some things are important for their sentimental value. Here are three questions you can ask yourself if you are deciding on what precious memories to keep.

1. How Often Do You Use/ Bring It Out

This may be the best test for how much you will miss the thing that you are thinking of throwing away. If this is the first time that you have seen this item in years, then it isn’t that special and you can drop it. Do you bring it out once every 2 or 3 years? Take a picture or write about in your journal. If it is an item that comes out at least once a year, it is worth keeping around.

2. Is The Person Who Gave It To You Still Around?

Sometimes you keep something because the person who gave you the item visits once in a while, and they will be sad if the thing is missing. Conversely, sometimes you keep something because the person who gave it to you has passed out of your life, and you want to hang onto the memory of the person through the item. This is up to you, and no sense of minimalism or aesthetic value should interfere with the choice.

3. Does It Serve Some Secondary Purpose?

We hang on to pictures because they hide really ugly spots on the wall. Sometimes our children want to play with the stuffed animal that we won at the fair, or that rock that we painted with friends makes a great bookend. If you can justify an item’s existence with a practical use, it stays.

Now that you know which memories you need to pack, you might need help moving. If so, contact us at Brown Box Movers.