The Dance Battle That Sparked a Lifetime of Hoarding

It all started back in the late 2000’s, I had just finished competing with a fellow 8-year-old girl in a dance competition at my buddy’s birthday party. And now it was time to determine the winner.

I tried to ignore how fast my heart was racing while I bent down, my arms resting on my thighs, panting from the mini workout dance I had just completed. The MC took a hold of my opponent’s frail arm, raised it in the air and spoke in the microphone-

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“If the girl in yellow is your winner, let me hear you say YEAH YEAH!!!”

“YEAH YEAH!!!!!” the crowd of giggling children screamed, a significant number of them too.

I was sure I had lost the battle after hearing the intensity of that scream. My eyes started filling up with tears; there was no way I could top that, or so I thought.

The MC turned to me, took my arm and raised in the air, then said,

“If the girl in pink is your winner, let me hear you say WOOOOO!!!”

“WOOOOOOOOO!!!!” the whole crowd erupted in a reverberating sound.

I was taken aback. Wow, so they like me then😜😅. I quickly wiped the tear that had managed to escape and raised my shoulders high.

“And there you have it; the prize goes to the pretty girl in the pink shirt,” the MC said, referring to me, after which everyone clapped.

The MC then picked up a gift bag and gave it to me.

You want to know what was inside the bag? I’ll never forget it—the item that would later become the origin of my villain story and the very thing that activated the hoarding spirit inside of me.

It was a Jotter and a Pen

As you can see, I’ve been doing it since I was little. I can’t fully explain it in a way that would sound logical, but whenever I see a book, most especially a jotter, my heart explodes into little cozy clouds and I get ecstatic internally. I am moved to secure it at all costs.

And let’s not talk about pens. I have been known to get feral and/or emotional after losing a pen in the past. I don’t care if I have a whole pack of pens; if one gets missing, it affects my mood for the day. It’s a “no sheep gets left behind” situation.

And when you throw me, being a nurse, into the mix, you get yourself a recipe for disaster😅. Because if there is one universal thing about nurses, it’s that we do not joke about our pens.

Over the years, after attending birthdays, weddings, inductions, and what have you, I've managed to gather myself a mini collection of jotters. But in the spirit of minimalism, I have given out most of it to people as gifts.

I only have a few of them left now, with little to no idea what I’ll use them for. But one thing is for sure, I’m not giving these ones out just yet. I have a feeling they’ll still be with me when I start a family 😄.

I’d like to say that I won’t be receiving any more jotters, but that would be a lie. I just can’t say no to something so heartwarming. I will work on decluttering though. I’ll learn to give the out some day…

Do you have something absurd that’s precious to you as well? What is that one thing you hoard that makes no sense to the next person but makes you feel good? I’d love to hear it in comment below.

_{This is my participation in the #cleanin-out-my-closet contest being held in the Minimalist community. 16th of July is the last day, hurry up and participate!}

Images used are mine.