Last week I wrote about some of the “Buried Treasure” I found while going through a trunk filled with memorabilia. It had been a long time since I put my hands and eyes on everything contained in that box. Some of the cards and letters I discovered were associated with hard times in my life or old agreements. It was time to let those go.
I built a sacred fire in a safe place and allowed the flickering orange flames to transform those paper reminders into something new. As part of my ceremony, I also sprinkled a dash of dried sage leaves into the fire to help clear the energy. The next day I felt lighter, but something was still off.
Whenever I have an impulse to make changes in my home, I check in with my dear friend, Dorena, the Space Doula. This is her area of expertise, and one of her superpowers is asking simple but profound questions. While discussing my journey down memory lane, she dropped this bombshell: How would it feel to release the trunk itself?
As I mentioned last week, I’ve had that trunk for almost 20 years. I was thrilled to find it for a low price at HomeGoods when I was starting a whole new chapter of my life. After massage school and finding Unity on the Bay in Miami, my spiritual journey accelerated quickly. As my inner world changed, my outer world had to follow.
After 3 years, I was leaving the party energy of Miami Beach to live with two dear friends in a residential neighborhood north of Fort Lauderdale. Their new house was not far from a spa where I was hired as a licensed massage therapist. New home. New career. Everything was lining up, and that trunk fit the “Pier 1” style vibe I wanted to create in my new space.
I have moved dozens of times since then, and each time that trunk has come with me. It went all the way to California at the end of 2011 when I moved there to help a friend open a spiritual retreat center. It came back to Florida later in 2012 when things didn’t work out as I hoped.
When I moved to Texas in 2018, I gave almost everything I had away. That trunk was one of the few pieces of furniture I kept and the only piece of furniture that returned to Florida with me in 2021.
As Dorena insightfully pointed out, that trunk has been a stable, familiar presence through it all. In a way, it also represented the core of me as it stored and protected all those memories. But how do I feel about it currently?
While pondering this question, I was surprised to discover I wasn’t attached to keeping it. It’s great for storage, but the trunk is heavy and clunky. It has been quite cumbersome to move it so many times. It also has very sharp corners which I have had the distinct displeasure of bumping into many times over the years.
As I looked around my space, it became apparent that my taste has changed. It now leans toward contemporary patterns and lighter colors. Simply put, the dark, heavy trunk no longer matches my vibe. The answer to Dorena’s question seemed obvious. In the immortal words of Elsa from Disney’s Frozen, it was time to “Let it go!”
Once again, I pulled everything out of the trunk, but this time I found new homes for all the contents. Most of the items now reside in two clear plastic bins from Target. Wow, are they light and easy to carry!
Then I pulled the empty trunk out onto my balcony where I used sage to clear the energy of the past 20 years. As fate would have it, we had a full moon this week. I felt inspirited to leave the trunk open and outside that night to release any lingering energy to Grandmother Moon. Then it would be ready for a new home.
The following morning, I carried that heavy beast one last time from the balcony, through my home, down the stairs, and into the back of my car. As if I needed any more convincing, the metal handle painfully pressed two fingers on my right hand into the side of the trunk as I lugged it down the stairs. Oh, yes. I was ready to release that trunk!
The woman working at the Goodwill Donation Center raved about how beautiful the trunk was and asked why I was getting rid of it. Without going into detail, I told her the trunk had been with me for 20 years, and I was ready to release it. I had to laugh when she yelled, “That’s a long time. You should keep it!” It’s like the Universe was making sure I was truly ready to let it go. I was.
When the woman went back inside to get a receipt, I placed my hand on the trunk, closed my eyes, and thanked it for all the years it stored and protected my memories. I blessed it to find a new home and a new owner who would be just as thrilled to find it as I was 20 years ago. Then I released it with love. I look forward to seeing the blessings and miracles that fill the space made available by releasing that heavy piece of my past.
If you could use some “sage advice” (pun intended) on clearing and shifting the energy in your home and your life, I highly recommend working with my friend and colleague, Dorena Kohrs, the Space Doula. Her intuition and on-point questions have helped me connect dots I never would have connected. I am continually blown away by her knowledge, experience, and insights. Look for her on social media @Space_Doula or visit her website at https://spacedoula.com/.
And if there are thoughts, beliefs, or family patterns that you are ready to release, I would be honored to assist you with a series of Spiritual Coaching Sessions or a private Family Constellations Session. Both can help you see things from another perspective to allow more peace, love, and joy in your life. Thanks to Zoom, Skype, and FaceTime, we can connect no matter where you are in the world. Look around my website for more information or to schedule an appointment with my automated scheduler. If you have questions, please send me a message. I look forward to working with you!
All healing is release from the past.
A Course in Miracles ~ T-13.VIII.1:1
