OK, so this is like one of those life-changing experiences. In 2005, after 93 years, Mike's Gran passed away. I had the opportunity to meet her while she was alive and could say that she was a remarkable woman. She was blind, and like most people of her age had mobility issues, but none the less, she lived on her own in a big farm-home in a most beautiful part of northern England.
Following her passing, we went over to her home to help with cleaning her house to get it ready for re-sale. There was a lot to do, since she lived in the home about 40 years, and literally did not do thing to the home to keep it in good maintenance. During the night, one could hear the plaster crumbling off the walls, mice were regular visitors with easy access in through holes in the house, and general musty smell permeated every part of the house. Heck, while we were clearing up the outside of the house, a part of the chimney fell off and crumbled down.
Although we tried to give away as much of the household goods to charity as possible (armoires, beds, linens, dining tables, chairs, linens, books, etc) - no one was really interested in taking any of it. I guess antiques are just not that rare, and it was too expensive to consider shipping any of the items back to Canada. So, we literally had a fire going on all week, where day after day, we burned pretty much all of the existing remaining items in the home. I'm an anthropology major and it felt like we were conducting a big funeral pyre all week long. This experience drove home to me, that you really can't take it with you when you leave.
When we arrived came home after that trip, I suddenly felt myself claustrophobic with our space and furniture. The furniture we had at the time was big. large and over-sized. I realized that I could no longer function in the space. Thus began, a major transformation. Over a few months and much planning, we purged a lot of items that sat around collecting dust, sold most of furniture, and underwent a major renovation. The space was transformed into a lovely airy space to practise and teach yoga, as well as still welcoming for guests.
They say (who ever "they" are) that life leads you down paths where certain lessons or realities about your self needs to be leaned. That experience of burning his Gran's belongings, made me realize a few things....