It has been almost two years since I ordered my copy of Marie Kondo’s book, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.” It’s been eleven months since I completed the Kon-Mari Consultant Seminar in San Francisco, CA. I read about the book that transformed my life from a weekly e-mail newsletter I subscribe to, which I sometimes glance at and sometimes don’t. Thankfully I clicked on it that fateful day, and my life changed. Written by Chana Weisberg, the editorial wrote about how Marie Kondo’s home organizing book  was taking the publishing world by storm and how it also called to mind spiritual values of what we surround ourselves with and how we choose what we own. Surely such a small book couldn’t change my life!

Oh, but it did, and in wondrous ways. I became entranced from turning the first page when the small brown box from Amazon arrived in the mail. Marie Kondo’s book “The Life -Changing Magic of Tidying Up” was the missing puzzle piece to why I would have spurts of organizing and cleaning but could never maintain my lofty goals of a clutter-free life. It addressed the relationship we have with our “stuff” and how it can be a fraught experience knowing what to let go of or keep…but when we focus on what “sparks joy” the answers become clear.

Instead of being ordered to throw out everything, or shamed for my collections, I was asked two powerful but straightforward questions by reading the book. How did I visualize my ideal life, and what sparked joy? This positive foundation for tidying allowed me to finally address the mountains of clothing, memorabilia and sentimental items I kept for years, moving them across four states over thirty years. Thanking items allowed me to discard them without guilt, and focusing on what sparked joy gave me the ability to choose, use, and celebrate the things I kept.

Tidying using the KonMari Method allowed me to finally discard or donate items that were holding me back, and to start building my ideal life, step by step.  This method of organizing becomes a way of life, bringing clarity and gratitude.  I look forward to sharing details and photos of my tidying journey on this blog and my experiences as a Kon-Mari Consultant in-training.