The Energy of Keepsakes: Releasing the Past and Embracing the Present
- Emily
- Nov 24, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 25, 2024
Not too long ago, my mum decided to sell her house and venture into life on the road. That, of course, meant the lifetime of keepsakes I had hoarded in her attic were being evicted and I had to find somewhere for them to go.
After a couple of video calls our keep, bin, charity shop process had whittled my precious keepsakes down to two boxes that would make their way up to Scotland, hand-delivered by my mum. (Thanks, Mum).
Sidenote: I moved up to Scotland a day before we went into lockdown with my now husband, my belongings fitting in the boot of a car and two bike panniers. That move offered me a clean slate—no memories or attachments to things or places here; something that I didn't realise was such a gift until two boxes of memories landed in my home...
I'm not sure how else I can decribe going through these boxes, other than energetic time travel. Sitting amongst this pile of stuff that has so much information tied to my past felt like I was bathing in the energy of that time. Reliving each moment as I read it. Temporarily, momentarily becoming that person again. Which for the most part, just felt... Ew.
Piles of school reports that relayed the same underwhelming message again and again. A letter from a friend on how I'd hurt her over the course of our friendship. Love notes from relationships that didn't end well and diaries documenting days that I don't feel proud of.
What I thought would be a lovely trip down memory lane had actually became grossly painful. I felt the pain of the moment I was reliving, the pain of seeing the bigger picture of what was going on in life at that time, the pain of knowing how I must have impacted others around me and the pain of seeing what I needed but didn't have. I had entered mental paralysis and energetic rot.
In the midst of my rummaging, I found myself trying to find some deeper meaning and reasons why I should keep these 'moments' in my life now. Maybe this is the day I unravel myself and find out 'who I am' and the 'why' of everything that's happened to me. Maybe I have some blocked energy that needs to be released by reliving these memories'.
Seriously...
Another sidenote: There is a tendency in the wellness / spiritual industry to push towards this sort of thing. Inner child work, shadow work, past life regression, the list goes on. While there is a time, place and purpose for this work you can run the risk of overcomplicating your journey and trapping yourself in the echos of a time that no longer exists.
Isn't the whole point of being human to keep moving forward whilst (hopefully) evolving and growing? How are we supposed to live a truly present life if we keep ourselves tied to the past?
For some reason I have grown up to believe that keepsakes and memories should be held onto. That we should savour as much of life as we can because it is so fleeting and finite. But while I sifted through these boxes of memories, I found myself zoned out of my baby's gurgles and pleas for attention and mentally in another place. Leaving one moment in the now, for a moment that had already had its time and passed.
Trading a moment that is alive, for one that is dead.
So, in the spirit of truly savoring life—of being present and alive and releasing the past—I’m choosing a ceremonial burning of keepsakes. I’ll keep the few treasures that truly matter, and I’ll lovingly let go of the rest.
Because some things are meant to be forgotten, and that’s okay.
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