1984
0Tidy space, tidy mind?
Are you the kind of person who needs a pristine, orderly environment for you to feel relaxed?
Or perhaps being surrounded by your clutter is not a big d. eal, it might even bring you comfort.
'Professional organisers', who help people declutter their space, have grown in popularity in recent years, particularly on the internet.
But does shedding your possessions always make you happier? Or, does clutter matter?
Living in a messy space can have various negative effects on our lives. For example, a study called 'No Place Like Home' by Repetti and Saxbe, found that mothers with messy homes had higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol and an increased depressed mood throughout the day. Messy homes can also make it harder to fall asleep, according to the 2021 study 'The association between sleep and late life hoarding', and no one wants that!
So perhaps Marie Kondo, author of 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying', was on to something when she said, "tidying can transform your life". To achieve Kondo's style of minimalism, she recommends gathering all your things together, choosing which items 'spark joy' and then discarding the rest. Some may find it invigorating to begin again on a clean slate, while others, particularly extreme hoarders, can find the process anxiety-inducing, because of an attachment to their belongings.
Then there are those who simply enjoy collecting. Vintage style expert Kate Beavis has a home filled with handbags, toys, phones and cookware from the 1960s. Others may call this clutter, but she argues that minimalist homes are "boring and bland". Some items may not have a practical use, but instead hold sentimental value, and spark joy in a nostalgic way. And things that "evoke happy memories are valuable, especially to people with memory problems," says Chris Stiff, senior lecturer in psychology at Keele University.
Maybe a giant mess isn't all bad. And as Albert Einstein once said, "If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?"
词汇表
pristine [ˈprɪstiːn] 整洁的，崭新的
orderly [ˈɔː(r)də(r)li] 井然有序的，整齐的
clutter [ˈklʌtə(r)] 杂乱的东西；杂乱
professional organiser [ˈɔːɡənaɪzər] 专业整理师
declutter [di:'klʌtə(r)] 清理，整理
shed [ʃed] 丢弃，去除，摆脱
possession [pə'zeʃ(ə)n] 个人物品，所有物
messy ['mesi] 杂乱的，不整洁的
stress hormone cortisol [ˈhɔː(r)məʊn]['kɔːtɪsɒl] 应激激素皮质醇
depressed mood [dɪ'prest]情绪低落
hoarding [ˈhɔː(r)dɪŋ] 囤积，贮藏
tidy ['taɪdi] 整理，使整洁；整齐的，整洁的
on to something 有道理，发现某事的真相
minimalism [ˈmɪnɪm(ə)lˌɪz(ə)m] 极简主义
spark joy [spɑː(r)k] 带来快乐，激发愉悦感
discard [dɪsˈkɑː(r)d] 丢弃，抛弃
invigorating [ɪnˈvɪɡəˌreɪtɪŋ] 令人充满活力的，精神充沛的
clean slate [sleɪt] 改头换面，崭新的开始
hoarder [hɔ:də] 囤积者，喜欢囤积东西的人
anxiety-inducing [in'dju:siŋ] 引发焦虑的
attachment [ə'tætʃmənt] 依恋，感情依赖
belongings [bɪˈlɒŋɪŋz] 所有物，物品
vintage style ['vɪntɪdʒ] 复古风格
cookware [ˈkʊkˌweə(r)] 烹饪用具，厨具
bland [blænd] 平淡的，乏味的
sentimental value [ˌsentɪˈment(ə)l] 情感价值
nostalgic [nɒˈstældʒɪk] 怀旧的，令人怀念的
evoke [ɪˈvəʊk] 引起，唤起（感情、记忆等）
a giant mess ['dʒaɪənt] 一片杂乱，一团糟
cluttered [ˈklʌtəd] 凌乱的，杂乱的，混乱的
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