July 15, 2026 I referred to it as “The Purge of 2026.” Inspired by the realization that I had copious amounts of really, really old food in my chest freezer and pantry, I considered renting a dumpster to do a clean-out. Mentioning this idea to my father, he offered an even better solution: his very large dump trailer. With more capacity available, the job got much bigger, and I decided to do a whole-home purge. I’ve lived in my house for 20 years now. In 20 years, a lot of “stuff” accumulates. I saw the arrival of a dump trailer in my front yard as an opportunity to address the accumulation. I had boxes stored in my bedroom that have been following me around since college. I had remnants of craft projects and home improvement projects long-since finished (or never finished). I had clothes in my closet ranging in sizes from 6 to 16. Jake, my son, had toys kicking around from when he was a young child. And that’s just the beginning. It was a lot of work, and I mean that both physically and emotionally. “The Purge” involved lots and lots of moving and carrying things around, and lots and lots of bending in awkward positions to sort through cupboards and storage areas. It also involved revisiting a lot of memories of different times in my life, including some painful times. While my body was a bit sore at the end (I joked that “my everything hurt”), “The Purge of 2026” felt amazing in a lot of ways. It felt like a fresh start. I suddenly have lots of empty space in my house – empty shelves, empty drawers, empty cupboards, empty corners. While I’m consciously avoiding the urge to fill the empty, I currently see all the space I have as potential. Getting rid of the garbage gives me room for things that add value to my life, things that bring me joy (I’ve started a mini home gym, for example). It occurred to me that my house isn’t unlike my life. I happen to be super efficient at sinning. I accumulate garbage internally. When I’m carrying around piles of that sin, that garbage, it can easily dominate my life, and it leaves less room for God and for good. We’re so incredibly blessed as Catholics to have the opportunity to access God’s forgiveness in a concrete way through the sacrament of reconciliation – confession. Like “The Purge of 2026,” truly and honestly examining our lives can be hard work. But in addition to accessing God’s love and forgiveness and helping us get to eternal life with him, offloading our sins can be freeing and cathartic, and it can make room for more goodness in our lives. |
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