Reflections

When we lose someone who has made significant changes in the world, especially when they are a peer whose life ended far too soon, it gives us a needed pause for reflection and review of our own existence.  I was faced with such an opportunity last night after hearing that Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had passed away.

News accounts and responses from across the globe used these words to describe Jobs:  innovator, visionary, icon, leader, creative genius, amazing human being, dear friend, inspiring mentor, brave, bold, talented, one of humanity’s great lights, a person who defined our time. 

I tend to perceive myself as being quite insignificant in comparison to a person who has done so much and is regarded so highly.  But by doing this, I am failing to recognize that each of us brings our own special gifts and contributions to the world, even if the scope of that world is much narrower than the one Steve Jobs was fortunate to have impacted.  I need to remember that I can strive to achieve my own dreams, pursue my own passions, cherish my family and friends, and live up to the standards I have set for myself in all aspects of my life.  And while many of the descriptors used for Jobs will never apply to me, I can hope that at least some of the individual words will resonate in my small circle of family, friends, associates, clients and acquaintances when they remember me. 

I discovered that Steve Jobs has left us many memorable and inspirational quotes, and this one, from his commencement address to Stanford University in 2005, I particularly love:

“No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true. 

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”     

(read the complete text here:  http://news.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html)

These words echo and affirm what I believe to be true, yet in my attempts to live them out I often stumble.  I am going to keep this quote somewhere visible for use each day, both as a reminder and as motivation.  I hope that you will consider doing the same.

Now, I could let parts of that quote segue into a lesson on decluttering and organizing, but I think I prefer to let my blog post end with this:  Thank you for your amazing legacy, Steve Jobs; may you rest in peace.

Avoid school year memorabilia overload!

With the new school year comes the daily flow of papers, homework, tests, projects, report cards, progress reports, annual photos and artwork, as well as calendars, schedules, flyers, contact lists and other papers from school and extracurricular activities.  Multiply all of that by the number of children in the household and you can quickly become buried. 

Whether you are sentimental and keep way too much, or just can’t work your way out from under the piles, don’t wait until the end of the school year to organize this memorabilia.  Get started NOW!  Set guidelines around what to keep, what to toss, what to put things in and where to store them.  You will be in control as the school year goes along instead of leaving an insurmountable project for later!

Some great suggestions to try:

• Immediately toss old homework and things that are out-of-date, irrelevant or damaged.

• Designate a separate container (storage bin, file box, binder) and a place (under bed, closet, cabinet) for keeping the memorabilia for each child.  If it gets too full, sort further!

• Let your kids help with the process.  They are often more realistic about what is worthy of keeping, and it teaches a valuable lesson about decision making and organization.

• Binders, or file boxes with hanging folders, are great for writing assignments, exceptional tests, report cards, or anything flat.  Use dividers to separate categories or school years, and slip special items into sheet protectors.  Bins, boxes and baskets of every type are also readily available.

• Start a scrap book each year for meaningful pictures and mementos of sports and other extracurricular activities.  Fill it as the year progresses.  Let your children decorate the pages.

• For artwork, consider creating a gallery.  Put up several large picture frames and display your favorite current pieces.  Or stretch string along a wall and attach art projects with clips or clothespins.  Swap out the art periodically for newer work, putting the older pieces in your storage box or bin. 

• Take a picture of your child with the pieces you don’t want to save, as a remembrance of what they created and how they looked that school year.  Other ideas:  give artwork to other family members, have photos of the work made into calendars, use it as wrapping paper.

• Three dimensional pieces are awkward and take up more space.  Again, photographs can capture the multiple dimensions of the project and are much easier to keep!  Special pieces can be displayed on a shelf or in a shadow box.   

 

Check out http://www.zazzle.com for personalized binders like this.

Find great boxes like these at The Container Store.

Rubbermaid makes storage bins that are readily available.

Look around for hanging file boxes that match your decor!

Organizing throughout the school year reduces clutter, stress and wasted time, and by saving less items, you add importance to those special pieces you keep!