“JANUARY,
The first month of the year,
A perfect time to start all over again,
Changing energies and abandoning old moods,
New beginnings, new attitudes”
Charmaine J. Forde
It’s officially a new year and for me that means looking at the long road ahead of me and wondering how in the world I will be organized and more purposeful this year. The best way for me to get into that scary but exciting head space is to remember that there is nothing better than taking stock of what you have and giving to those who have not. On the surface, I took care of some of those things during the holiday season, and frankly, I do all year long, but there is something so refreshing, rejuvenating, and renewing about a clean sweep that starts at the start of a new year.
This year I came up with my “top 5” list for each month of the year. I’m not a fan of tackling too much in a short amount of time. My reason is simple, everything that I will have in my hands needs dedication, time and care to be handled and thought with care and love and, I will be honest, everything has a memory attached to it and I want to allow that. impromptu trip down memory lane. I know well enough that the trip down memory lane will be time consuming and a small top 5 list will most likely take at least a week or two to complete depending on where my journey takes me. I give myself the whole month to complete my list because the other thing I know for sure is that one action, one thought, one intention will absolutely lead to another and before I know it I have a second top five list and maybe even a third. It all depends on what comes along the way and how my creativity flourishes.
This year, my focus for January is organizing, sorting, and storing my Christmas decorations, gifts, cards, and winter gear. This is how my thought process was formed…
My daughter has taken on the task of being the home decorator for all things holiday throughout the year, but especially the holiday season when things get really busy and we go from one celebration to the next. The boxes are stacked neatly in a corner for easy access and the decorations change almost daily if she goes to the store to buy something new (ugh).
Once the vacation is over, I’m ready to clean, but she’s not, so I start thinking about how I’ll approach cleaning once I get full permission from her. It is too sad a task for her to participate in cleaning, so I gladly do my part and take on that task on my own. During the cleanup, I make lists of what we will need for the following year in case something breaks or is crushed beyond recognition or I see something that is too beautiful to pass up next time. Then I create new ways to pack all the decorations so I don’t have too many boxes in the attic. It’s challenging and fun to put that puzzle together.
So when I thought about putting the decorations away this year, I also noticed that some of the Christmas presents were still stacked in one corner, so I considered that once the decorations were all up and in place until next year, what will I do? with all the gifts that need to be checked and put away? I’m an absolute believer in donating, whether it’s food, time, clothing, or services, so I knew right away that opening the donation station at home would take more than a few hours of my time. He would need everyone’s help to make those decisions.
Are you ready for the list? Here we go:
Set up a recycling and donation station that is accessible for all hands to contribute at any time, whether for this specific project or for deposits throughout the year.
Organize, label and store Christmas decorations and wrap them safely and carefully for easy access next year.
Break up empty gift boxes and cardboard boxes and wrap them tightly together for recycling. I have a few rolls of colored vinyl tape in the garage, so I use that as wrapping material. The recycling company in my area picks up the garbage every week so it makes my life easier and the guys appreciate the unique package so it’s a win-win situation.
Recycle Christmas trees and wreaths. I would check to see if your city has specific collection dates and times for recycling these items or maybe your landscaper will take them for a small fee or you can find a local recycling company in your area that picks up debris like trees. , bushes, etc. A city near me has the entire month of January available for residents to drop off their tree with some guidelines to follow and set times. Knowing that the tree will have a second chance to be of use to the earth is a great way to give back to the earth.
Save the front of your greeting cards and use them for projects throughout the year stored in a labeled box for things like sent pictures that can be framed or cherished words that can be embellished on a collage or gift tags for the coming year. Another idea is to donate the front of cards you don’t want to keep.
Sort through your gift cards, returnable items, broken or damaged items, or gifts you might think about re-giving and see if you can fix the broken ones or donate the gift cards or returnable items to a shelter or places like Ronald’s house McDonald. .
It’s at this point where going through those gift items allows me to go through my own “stuff” closets to see what needs to be kept and what could gain a new life for someone else. So, I decided to keep the winter clothes this month. Consider donating new or gently used winter gear such as blankets, sports gear, boots, gloves, scarves, hats, coats, shovels, scrapers, sweaters, flannels, electric blankets, pads or ointments and creams, hand warmers, socks , kneepads. hi stockings, shawls, jeans, etc.
Last thought: If you find that every month this year you want to declutter your pantry and donate to food banks throughout the year instead of just on Thanksgiving, then this month would be a good time to look for the items. that could have bought some. too much like soup, canned goods, pasta, cereal, anything boxed or canned that can be made into a hot meal.
And just like that, my top 5 list became my top 8 list and I still haven’t lifted a finger to get to the cleanup. Caramba!
I hope this has been helpful to you and most of all I hope you have fun with it. Allow your imagination and creativity to flourish and grow as you go through this list. If it’s easier for you, save your new list for February when you list a whole new set of top 5 ideas. If you’re really ambitious, remember that January feels like the longest month of the year, so go ahead and tackle your emerging ideas as they come. Good luck and see you here in February.
call to action
What stops you from organizing?
What would help you win in the organization?
Happy organization!
