Hector the Collector

I'm regarded by many as a collector of junk. I say there is a reason for it, it is rooted in how I see stuff.

This poem I used to read often to my kids, and I could read it with very great emotional empathy...

HECTOR THE COLLECTOR
by Shel Silverstein

Hector the Collector
Collected bits of string,
Collected dolls with broken heads
And rusty bells that would not ring.
Pieces out of picture puzzles,
Bent-up nails and ice-cream sticks,
Twists of wires, worn-out tires,
Paper bags and broken bricks.
Old chipped vases, half shoelaces,
Gatlin' guns that wouldn't shoot,
Leaky boats that wouldn't float
And stopped-up horns that wouldn't toot.
Butter knives that had no handles,
Copper keys that fit no locks,
Rings that were too small for fingers,
Dried-up leaves and patched-up socks.
Worn-out belts that had no buckles,
'Lectric trains that had no tracks,
Airplane models, broken bottles,
Three-legged chairs and cups with cracks.
Hector the Collector
Loved these things with all his soul‹
Loved them more than shining diamonds,
Loved them more than glistenin' gold.
Hector called to all the people,
"Come and share my treasure trunk!"
And all the silly sightless people
Came and looked...and called it junk.

Today on Dr. Phil I saw a woman getting really put to test for being a junk collector piling down every room in her house to the point her husband couldn't take it anymore. She said "I don't see it as a pile of junk...but a store room of unfinished projects" and some keepsakes....It didn't appear to me that Dr. Phil picked up on this internal dynamic/revelation though.

I did, cause I could "relate" to much of what the poor fellow collector girl was trying to express. Some of us in this life tend to obsess with not letting go of something we see potential in...if we can just get around to it. I do believe I can organize it and shelve it and store it in ways to allow access and usability or provide interest. What I've seen on talk shows where "collectors" are raked over the coals...the counselors seem to miss something major. If there is a psychological issue here its probably not OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder)...its probably something relevant or functional to the person's not completing projects, or not realistically limiting and selecting projects they can realistically get to.

Now many things are saved to be of use "as needed"..to fix stuff...to do stuff only rarely done...This can prove to be a valuable trait if such a person can obtain or build suitable filing and storage systems like shelves, cabinets, drawers....(if you notice in the photos of dwellings of "collectors of junk"...there is a great deficit of organizational furniture like bookcases, shelving...etc).

My goal is to step by step develop shelving and indexed storage system for those things of value (my collectors items)...and a system for those things "to be available when needed" like tools or spare parts....and a system for "project storage"...where it can clearly be seen that only so many projects can merit my attention. Maybe then and only then can I clearly see which stuffs fit in none of those categories and thereby should be discarded as junk.