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If these walls could talk
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the life-changing magic of choosing joy
About four years ago, I caught the Marie Kondo bug. Not surprising. I’ve spent my life maddeningly trapped between fastidious tidying…and piles and piles of disarray.
And here it was! The answer to organizing my life—once and for all—lovingly whispered in the pages of a tiny book bound by a calming cover of soft blue hues. And it was so simple:
Does it spark joy? If yes, keep. If not, toss.
Of course, there’s much more to Marie Kondo’s method of tidying up, but this one question is at the root of all she suggests.
And so I did it. I tackled the first suggested category using the KonMari method: clothing. And I did it thoroughly. I tossed every item of clothing on my floor and for each one, posed that question. Each item was either tossed or kept and then hung or folded just so. To this day, my clothing remains organized, pared down not to the essentials, but to what makes me feel good. There isn’t a single item of clothing in my wardrobe that I don’t like, not a single item that doesn’t spark joy.
I share this not to encourage you to get your own copy of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up—though do; it will change your life!—but because Marie Kondo’s simple message extends well beyond the walls of our homes.
While the KonMari method is designed to help people declutter their home, if you read to the end of the book, you’ll see that tidying your things makes way for deciding how you want to live.
Which means that this one question—Does it spark joy?—applies not only to the physical things that surround you, but also to how you fill your space and time, and with whom. And really, what could be more important, finally, than that?