Our family had friends who collected. Not one thing in particular, but a little of lots of things in particular. Some of it was purchased with the thought of “investment” for retirement. Some of it (all the magazines and other etceteras) accumulated and was simply kept. Eventually, there was little living space in the house, as everything was packed floor to ceiling. Small trails let from sitting area to sleeping area. When they passed away, someone had a fearsome task to clear things out.
I’ve found that many people I talk to about our friends knows someone whose collecting has gotten just this out of hand, whether it’s family, friend, friend of a friend, or neighbor. The topic makes some of us a bit queasy as we begin to wonder if perhaps our accumulation of “stuff” could get—or is getting–out of hand. The problem becomes worse when a parent or grandparent dies and we become the caretakers of things that we may not want or need, but for which we feel a sentimental or guilty obligation. A lot of this guilt is stored away in off-site storage units and is never seen again. We pay the rental fees, month after month, not wanting to deal with the problem. In fact, I recently read that off-site storage is a $20 billion a year business. That’s a lot of people with “stuff.”