The only time I can remember gettin rid of things and feeling a bit of a twinge was when I was moving home from Denmark. This was a forced purge because I could only bring what fit in two small bags. I didn’t leave behind anything great, but it would have been nice to have gotten rid of things in a more productive way (selling or donating them) than just leaving them in my appartment where they likely got tossed. Hopefully the next student to move in inherited them and found them useful.

I *haven’t* thrown them out and have them in a binder. And, yes, every once in a while I re-read the letter my mom sent me when I went off to college or the one a boyfriend wrote to me listing what he loved about me. I have never regretted NOT tossing them.

I’m now procrastinating a box of teaching resources. I cut it down by half a few months ago. I’d left teaching, but wasn’t sure at that stage if it was temporary or permanent. Now that I’m a SAHM, and intend to be for much longer yet, I don’t know if I’ll ever return to teaching. But I might. I’m trying to decide what things I might regret throwing out, and what things are easily reproducible!

My best friend in junior high and high school belonged to a religion that would not allow her to have friends outside of school who were not of the same faith. We were very, very close, but we knew our time was limited. In our senior year of high school, she took a blank book and filled it entirely, both sides of every page, with her artwork and sketches and random quotes and our inside jokes. I threw it out in my “I want everything I own to fit in my backpack” phase. Over the years I have thought of it often and I still really, really want it back. Would love to have her back in my life too.

I know I should scan some things before I throw them out, but I have limited patience for that. A month ago I threw out all of my Grandmother’s handwritten letters. I just couldn’t take the thought of hours of scanning, and I was in a “purge now” mood, and she was alive and very healthy. A week ago she died in some very difficult circumstances. Being able to reread them would mean the world to me now.

My best friend in junior high and high school belonged to a religion that would not allow her to have friends outside of school who were not of the same faith. We were very, very close, but we knew our time was limited. In our senior year of high school, she took a blank book and filled it entirely, both sides of every page, with her artwork and sketches and random quotes and our inside jokes. I threw it out in my “I want everything I own to fit in my backpack” phase. Over the years I have thought of it often and I still really, really want it back. Would love to have her back in my life too.

I know I should scan some things before I throw them out, but I have limited patience for that. A month ago I threw out all of my Grandmother’s handwritten letters. I just couldn’t take the thought of hours of scanning, and I was in a “purge now” mood, and she was alive and very healthy. A week ago she died in some very difficult circumstances. Being able to reread them would mean the world to me now.

My mother gave away a set of books that contained my favourite fairytales and I asked her to get these back for me. They are currently safely put away in a box amongst other books from my childhood. I am sure someone with young children would be happy to get these books but I love to hunt through these boxes and spend a rainy afternoon reading my favourite fairy tales again

My family seems to have a history of losing things because others have decided to purge them. After my grandfather died my paternal grandmother decided to get rid of his full set of Märklin model trains and dinky toy cars. She also gave away the castingstamp on which the family signet rings were moulded. With the castingstamp having new rings made for my siblings would be expensive but without the castingstamp it’s unaffordable…

I can usually tell myself to get over the feeling of regret because I coulnd’t control the purge but it’s harder to let go of the feeling that I’ve lost something that I did not want to lose.

I reduced my stash of art school sketches I really didn’t need by folding them up and placing them in library books.

@Sheryl, I relate to your story. My mom died a couple years ago, and I still have the dress she wore to my brother’s wedding. There’s no logical reason for it; I just can’t make myself give it up, for whatever reason.

@Stephanie, sometimes Freecycle is a good way to find a new home for a handmade item. With Freecycle, you know who the item is going to, and people often tell you why they want it, or how they’ll use it.

It’s interesting how many people have regrets about things others got rid of for them – a good illustration of why de-cluttering someone else’s stuff is a bad idea.

Note to purging parents: Don’t throw out your children’s homework before they turn it in!

I’ve also regretted my mother tossing a small hemispherical wicker wall basket, which would quite perfectly house a little orchid of mine which is otherwise in an awkward spot on my dining table. I have scoured the internet and local shops over the past year in search of a comparable item and have not yet found anything fitting.

While I’ve rarely regretted the things I’ve tossed out myself (because I think pretty hard on things–I’m still a packrat!), I’ve had a lot of grief over things other people I’ve lived with have tossed. I guess the lesson here is that even if YOU aren’t going to regret letting go of an item, consider before tossing whether someone ELSE might. Especially in the case of homework items

My unit was the only one in the building that did not get robbed. I didn’t have a whole lot of proselytizers or “Buy a magazine subscription and help me go to Hawaii” peddlers, either.

When I moved to another town, I pitched the paper target. I have absolutely no need for it, but damn I miss that thing!