I generally prefer pajamas to nightgowns, although I wore nightgowns as a child. While doing laundry a few days ago, I noticed there was one nightgown at the bottom of a stack of pajamas. Many years ago, I put it on sometimes to comfort myself if I had the flu or just felt tired and stressed. It made me feel like a little girl, well cared for, without any grown-up responsibilities to worry about.
 

You can probably tell from looking at the wrinkled cotton (not to mention the old-fashioned style) how much time has passed since then. Looking at it gives me good memories of comfort; but even so, it’s clutter and needs to find a new home.

When I started writing these weekly posts about clearing away my clutter, I expected that they would serve as a record of my small successes and would keep me motivated to do more. Another benefit I didn’t foresee was that they would help me give myself permission to let go of old items toward which I had good feelings. When I take the nightgown to the thrift store, it won’t be gone forever—it’s still right here in this post! I hope it will bring as much comfort to the woman who ends up buying it.

About Clutter Comedy: Every Sunday (which I envision as a day of rest after a productive week of de-cluttering) I post a Clutter Comedy article describing my most memorable clutter discovery of the week. Other bloggers who wish to join in are welcome—just post a link in the comments! There’s no need to publish any “before” photos of your clutter, if they are too embarrassing. The idea is simply to get motivated to clean it up, while having a bit of fun too!