The fine art of holding on and letting go

I'm an expert at letting things go, as long as they aren't mine.

I've come to this realisation over the last few weeks during The Great Cull. I've had no problem tossing things, or giving them away.
The children's things, out they go.
The Bloke's things, gone.
Strange things I swear I've never seen before (where did they come from..), out, out, out.
My stuff...whoa wait a minute, I might need that. I know I haven't needed it in the last 5 years, but I might need it next week.

Why is it so hard to declutter, to move away from possessiveness towards possessions?

Why is it so difficult to admit that if something hasn't seen the light of day this century, then you don't need it.

Take the recent wardrobe cull. I've learnt the lessons mentally, in fact I already knew them.

Don't keep your pre baby clothes, it just makes you feel fatter.
If it doesn't fit you properly, you won't ever wear it no matter if the colour is divine.
Uncomfortable shoes will always be uncomfortable.
That fantastic puff skirt from the 80's will come back into fashion, but it might be 20 years,  will you really wear it again?
polyester is like cheap wine, good for a quick thrill but the consequences can be very unflattering, pass it on.

I know these lessons, and yet I falter. Why is that.

It may be that our possessions are more than mere space-invaders. They hold our memories, and it's those moments that come upon you out of the blue, when you  re-discover an item, that is the addictive nature of modern day hoarders.

Like the time you cleaned out the linen closet and you found, way at the back, the first double bedspread you bought with your mum when you were 16. You remember the shop, and how much money it cost, and how your mum taught you to look for the best deal, but to make it a quality purchase too. You remember how proud you felt putting it on your 'grown-up' bed , and how your mum smiled.  That memory might not have surfaced for years, if ever, had that bed cover not been tucked away in the cupboard so it's not the things, but the emotions attached to the things that I find hard to let go.

I think the key lies in the quote below. And I guess it's okay to keep on to that bedspread until I figure out another way to hold that memory.

All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on. - Havelock Ellis