We all know Esther Rantzen as anything from journalist, to politician, to television presenter – but did you know that she is also a hoarder? Last year she shared her story with the Guardian.
Having recently moved from a large five-storey house in to a smaller two-bedroom flat, she told readers of her agony at parting with some of her most treasured possessions.
“Every inch of my home was crammed with this stuff, most of it mine, some of it my children’s and I loved it all. From the little rocking horse in the attic, to the hat box belonging to my grandmother in the basement. Even if I hadn’t seen it for years, had actually forgotten it was still there, it was all part of my family history, and throwing away felt like throwing away my life. As moving day approached, inexorable as an execution, I became paralysed with fear and indecision. My daughters got so worried about me they booked a professional de-clutterer.”
The professional de-clutterer started by suggesting that Rantzen should sort through some of the items she felt less sentimental about – her vase collection…
“So I led her to my cupboard holding the two hundred and fifty vases I had collected over forty years. I quoted mother to her, “you can never have enough vases”. Claire pointed out that, actually, you can. I minded losing every one. They each had their own story. The holiday in Tuscany. The little shop in Windsor.”
However it wasn’t just Esther’s feelings that were hurt – she also suffered financially. Putting her husband’s fine wine collection on auction fetched just three pounds per bottle, and an old champagne bucket she gave to charity turned out to be worth £1000 (though it was for charity, so she didn’t complain too much!).
She concluded by writing:
“The moral is, forget what anyone tells you about the catharsis of getting rid of clutter. Don’t believe them when they say you’ll be disinfecting your soul, and you won’t miss it anything. You will. I already do. Carry on hoarding.
If you decide to down-size, just rent one of those storage units that have sprung up alongside every motorway, and keep everything. You may never visit it, but you’ll know it’s there. And it’ll be something for your children to look through after you’ve gone. They’ll love that. Especially when they discover their own old rocking horse and school reports. And remember the Swedish proverb, “Don’t throw away the old bucket until you know whether the new one holds water.” Especially if there’s a chance the old bucket might be worth a thousand pounds.”
Store & Secure is more than happy to store all of your treasured possessions, so that you don’t have to endure the misery of losing them. We have storage units ranging from 1m³ lockers to 20,000 sq ft spaces, and can advise you on the safest ways to store your possessions. Contact us today, or fill out our “Request a Quote” form, to find out more about how we could help fulfil your storage needs.
Store & Secure 