“Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on The Art of Organizing and Tidying Up” by Marie Kondo

I am not a Manolo Blahnik kind of girl. I like to drool over Elfa Closet Systems. I don’t want to spend $1000 on a Fendi purse. I would rather pay California Closets $1000 to build shelves to display my Forever 21 handbags that run $24.99 a piece. I like order, not opulence. That’s the way I roll. So you can imagine how I came untethered in 2007 when at the age of 43 years old I filed for divorce from my husband. I felt like an overstuffed closet about to burst at the seams. I loved my children. I love my husband. And I loved my house, which many said was the prettiest house in Sea Cliff. However, I knew the divorce was not only necessary and right, but also inevitable and true. But then why did I feel so sick about it?  I wanted to climb on top of one of the beautiful green granite counter tops in my kitchen and cry my eyes out for a week. But that seemed unproductive. So I decided instead to clean my drawers. I started with the kitchen and moved right onto every room in the house while my girls were at school and my husband was at work. We eventually sold that tidy house, got divorced and moved on with the rest of our lives. Flash forward to last year: I read with anticipation Marie Kondo’s first book  “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.” I loved this book from beginning to end like a long slow walk through The Container Store. So when Kondo’s second book came out this year, I ran to read it, too.  “Spark Joy” is as good as the first book because it not only charts new territory (kitchen utensils and photography) but also builds upon the basic rules set forth in the first book. If you didn’t like the first book, then don’t even bother reading this book because it will irritate you. But if you loved the first book then you will like the second book even more because it will take you further down the road of decluttering. When I got divorced I had a hauler named Mr. Christensen back up his truck to my garage. I then pitched box after box into his flat-bed and watched happily as he drove it all away.. Hanging on to things that don’t bring you joy is a waste of energy and time. Make room for the things that make you happy and dump the garbage no matter how much you paid for it at Neiman Marcus. Next time you are in my neighborhood, come and see my bra drawer. It is spectacular thanks to Kondo. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.