It's OK to throw it away

The case against guilt-based clutter

After the holidays, lots of people find themselves with stuff they don’t want. Maybe it’s misplaced gifts like gingerbread scented sugar scrub.…when you really don’t enjoy smelling like gingerbread. Maybe it’s holiday decorations that you’re tired of or that don’t work anymore.

Ideally you might be able to give unwanted items to a friend, relative, or neighbor, or to a charity that might be interested. Maybe some elements could be recycled.

But if you’re holding onto something because of the guilt of wanting to keep it out of the landfill, know this: it’s going to wind up there eventually. The question is when.

If you opened that bacon jam from the gift set and tried it and hated it, you’re not going to be able to give it to a food bank in a partially consumed condition. It might sit in your fridge for a year or more, taking up space. It can sit there for 2 years and then get thrown away when you wind up moving or getting a new fridge… or it can get thrown away today.

So know this: it’s OK to throw it away.

I know we all want to do our part in reducing waste. But once an object is created, its life cycle is going to end somewhere. Ideally it will be used in the meantime, but whether it is or isn’t doesn’t change that final outcome. If you can find someone who can use it, that is awesome. But if no one is going to use it, then giving it an intermediate life as clutter isn’t actually helping the environment. Go ahead and get rid of it.

This is a Vanderhack that I’m really writing for myself because…this is hard for me to accept. I’m a thrifty person, and I like to make use of things. My 5-year-old’s coats have all been worn by at least 2 children and sometimes more than that (e.g. my brother’s kids before mine!).

But if I’m never going to use a tube of lipstick because I don’t like the color, it does nothing for anybody sitting in my drawer. I can’t give it to anyone else after I’ve used it once and it’s just going to get grosser over time sitting there. The time to act was in the buying or receiving — which is a good reason to pause and think about purchasing things. But once that’s done, it’s OK to throw it away. Nothing lasts forever. Best to free up space in your home and in your mind.