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  • Stress blog

  • Dec. 8, 2010

    Clear away the clutter of the past

    By Edward T. Creagan, M.D.

8 comments posted

A trip to the dump on a bitterly cold Saturday morning provided me an incredible insight. My wife and I recently made our annual trip to the landfill and among the items we discarded were a television that no longer worked, a printer that turned English into some ancient language and a hair dryer that didn't dry your hair so much as it vaporized it. At one point, these were important items in our life. They weren't crucial to survival, but they made life a little more pleasant. With the passage of time, however, they'd become extraneous clutter.

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It made me think that events and circumstances also outlive their usefulness. Situations that once consumed your attention and drained your energy appear small and inconsequential in the rearview of life. If you've wrung the lessons out of these experiences, it's important to let them go. Hanging on to them only clutters your mind.

As Woody Allen once said, "Eighty percent of success is showing up." To me that means that if you're persistent, and have faith, family and a focus, you can survive and endure just about anything. Maybe things never go back to normal. But that's not the end of the world. You have to set the dial to a new normal and face the future with courage, conviction and hope.

8 comments posted

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  • February 23, 2011 5:35 p.m.

    As I sat here and read your blog,I realize its hard for me let things be put to past. My life has been overly exaggerted and consumed by this certain subject letting go. I know by reading this blog from now on i can start being clutter FREE! thanks

    - NaTasha

  • January 25, 2011 10:08 a.m.

    Its true that we should learn from our past experiences and then throw those thoughts in trash.

    - Amit

  • December 22, 2010 12:39 p.m.

    I too think this is one of your best posts. I learned over the years that it is more important to be faithful than to succeed.

    - carol

  • December 17, 2010 1:41 p.m.

    Hi I'm Maria; I am a medicine student at the Catholic University of Maule in Talca, Chile. I appreciate your effort and dedication to write every week in this blog. I think that is interesting that you're an oncologist, and write about stress. It is also very entertaining out of the daily events of the life you can get reflections. Personally, I think of all posts in your blog, this is the most interesting. I also want to say that I like the Mayo Clinic website, because it has many health information, blogs of different experts and various important health topics. Thanks.

    - Maria

  • December 10, 2010 3:18 p.m.

    You and your wife are always on target... less things so you will have more time and room to pet dear Brinkley! that's a DOG) Happy Holiday from St. Petersburg, Florida

    - Kristina

  • December 8, 2010 2:50 p.m.

    that was the perfect quote that i needed to hear today. thanks

    - denise

  • December 8, 2010 9:05 a.m.

    My mother saved several childhood dolls. They sat in a box in her garage. Definately extraneous clutter (if you'd seen her garage). I recently hired a artist to paint them. He says he is almost done, the painting has been going well. Have you thrown out a masterpiece?

    - Big Carol

  • December 8, 2010 8:21 a.m.

    very timely post. I will be noodling on this one this week,,,its very helpful. thank you for your weekly words!

    - TMary

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