Today I finally, finally cleaned out our storage room. It’s been on my radar for years, but every time I went in to start I’d immediately feel overwhelmed and quit. A huge part of my problem is that it’s SO HARD for me to get rid of perfectly good stuff.
For example, what was in that box from 1996? The label read “Scratch paper.”
An entire box filled with various types of paper: loose-leaf notebook paper, stationary, index cards, note pads, scratch pads, the LOST DOG flyers we made for a friend’s dog who disappeared on our watch, old lesson plans, brand new folders, labels, classroom handouts, etc.
I’d never been able to get rid of it because every time I peeked inside that box I thought about the woman who taught in the room next to mine telling me about traveling to another country where paper was so precious people would smooth out envelopes that arrived in the mail and write letters on the insides. How could I recycle all that perfectly good paper?
Well, today I got tough. Probably not as tough as I should’ve been (because I kept about one-quarter of the paper), but it was a fine start.
And look what gem I uncovered. I love me some vultures and that little pic on the bottom corner of the note pad cracked me up. But is that joke worth a 23-year stay in my basement?
Tracy Abell 
Not sure I knew that you’re a teacher, too. What do/did you teach, Tracy?
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Long ago I was an elementary school teacher, Becky. I only had my own classroom for one year and then moved to Alaska where it was VERY competitive. I did long-term subbing and then ended up as the education director for the recycling center. And then I had my first son and stopped altogether. But I still identify as a “former teacher.”
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And you are; I think that subbing is some of the most challenging teaching! My experience ranges from preschool to middle school language arts. Kindergarten was my favorite, and I ended my “career” with that. I didn’t teach as long as many people do, since I got started late in life.
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Subbing absolutely doesn’t offer much of the best stuff (relationships with kids and continuity) and dishes out some of the worst (behavior issues, lack of creative input). That’s quite a range in your experience! I enjoyed my time in kindergarten, too. Although I was assigned to one all-day class that was SO academic and the kids were tired. I read to them and let them nap if needed. Shh. Don’t tell. 🙂
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It IS a long day for kids in kindergarten, and I only had one year that was still a half-day program.
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Congratulations!
I’m still unearthing and discarding stuff I accumulated in the 1980s.
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HA! You’ve got my record beat, Jenn! (Although that’s not to say I don’t have stuff from the 80s that I no longer use/need….just that I don’t have it all in one box).
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I find it hard to get rid of paper, too! And for similar reasons. But when we moved to the UK, I had to get tough (and get a shredder, too). Now I’m back to saving everything I can.
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Paper-hoarding is a common ailment, I think. Raising my fist in solidarity, Amy!
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