little boxes on the . . . well, somewhere

So, yes, I cleaned the attic. And then I counted. Empty plastic boxes. You know, those shiny colorful boxes they put on sale right about this time of year, for all those people who made a New Year's Resolution to get more organized? The Great Marketing Geniuses know this, and they know they can entice you with color and newness to buy boxes to neatly wrap up said resolution. Probably, you'll put it in your attic.

Clearly, they've enticed me in the past, because I counted twenty-six empty plastic boxes when all was said and done. Twenty-six. All full of stuff we, apparently, didn't need. I have a problem. I have been known to buy new boxes when we had perfectly good old ones just because the new ones were so darn pretty. Even though I knew they would just sit in the attic and never be seen by anyone but possibly a random rabid raccoon.

Is there a recovery program for people with a plastic storage box addiction? I know, I know--recognizing that I have a problem is the first step. The first thing to do is always recognize that we're in denial. I need to get rid of the denial.

But . . . what should I do with it? I know, how about if I pack it up in a colorful plastic box? Denial is pretty messy, you know, and I need to keep it neatly packaged. Then I'll store it away somewhere. You never know when you might need it again. I'd hate to not have it if I ever wanted to pull it out again for any reason.

I hope you're recognizing this as a bad idea. Worse, even, than packing up twenty-six boxes of stuff we'll never use. Some things you shouldn't keep because they're out of date—like those clothes child #3 laughed hysterically at even thinking that her sisters wore those once upon a time. She's currently looking for blackmail photos.

Some we shouldn't keep because someone else could use them and we never will. Like the elementary school supplies still up there when our youngest is almost a junior in high school.

Some we should ditch because they just clutter up our lives with things we don't need but keep thinking about when we should be paying attention to the things right in front of us.

And some, like denial, we need to get out in the open and face and discard forever, before it molds and mildews in the attics of our minds and hearts. Before it causes so much of our lives to be tainted with its faded-to-off-color viewpoints and worn-out beliefs about ourselves.

2012 needs to begin with a clean mental attic. I've got twenty-six empty boxes—what about you? Let's not, in 2012, fill them with things we don't want to carry with us forever.