Part 1: In the Beginning, there was Clutter
Clutter- Exhibit A
Unless you are one of the fortunate folks who have migrated south to warmer climates for the winter, you are probably spending much of your time lately indoors, whether at the barn or at your home. You’re probably looking at your horse and wishing you could be riding, but the three inches of ice on top of your ring is preventing that from happening. So, what do you do?
If you’re like me, chances are you’ve been riding for some time, and with that come the inevitable accumulation of, well, horse stuff. You know what I mean – the piles of wraps, blankets that don’t fit (or are ripped, need to be washed, sewn, will fit another horse someday…) twenty-five bridles, strap goods, three or four saddles, boots that could outfit an entire equestrian team at a local university – well, you get the point. Wouldn’t now be the perfect time to take some of that stir-crazy energy we all have from not riding and use it to get organized for the upcoming show season? How fantastic would it be to have everything in its place in time to take that first trailer ride out to the show, so that you knew exactly where everything was?!
You may have heard of a book that topped the national bestseller list, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, by Marie Kondo. Her KonMari method has changed the lives of many people by allowing them the freedom to de-clutter using one simple principle: If you don’t love it, don’t keep it! Piles of stuff and clutter literally raise your cortisol levels, causing unnecessary stress in your life. Just like the Posture Prep Cross Fiber Groomer is designed to reduce stress in your horse, the KonMari method of organizing is going to help you reduce stress around the barn so that both you and your horse are less stressed.
In this three-part series, my goal is to take you on my journey of de-cluttering and show you the before and after. My goal is to keep only the items that bring me joy, and the items that I do not keep I will be putting aside to go to consignment. In further keeping with the KonMari method, I will be tidying each area all at once, and each category at the same time (wraps, bits, leather, etc.) The three areas I have chosen to target are my home tack room, my SUV (aka moving tack room) and my barn tack room. As you can see from the photos, I have a LOT of work to do… I look forward to taking this journey with you all and to getting organized for the coming show season!
About the Author:
Clutter- Exhibit B
Stacy Bromley Cheetham, MPA grew up riding horses. She currently resides in Raleigh, NC with her boyfriend, her two rescue Pomeranians, an ornery calico cat, and is working with a promising young OTTB, Indelible (Hanna No Sir) who came from the Track to Tranquility race rehoming program. She is a fundraiser for a local nonprofit and is the Silent Auction Chair for Duke Jump for the Children, an AA rated horse show benefiting Duke Children’s Hospital.