Filing

The green monstrosity stands in the corner of my library. Its color is a shade or so darker than the "hospital green" of several decades ago. The file cabinet (the monstrosity) is an antique four-drawer Steelcase, made of - you guessed it - solid steel. It takes two strong men to move it when it's empty. I can't remember exactly when or where I acquired it, but it has seen me through long years of formal education and it has acquired a lot of baggage along the way.

When I moved recently, I discovered that the file cabinet drawers overflowed with photos, letters and greeting cards that I'd received from family and friends over the years; old journals, my 24-year old son's baby book, and even an old tape recorder, as well as a warranty for a typewriter that I owned 15 years ago. One drawer did actually contain folders, but they were filled with outdated information and arranged in no particular order. Over the years, I had absent-mindedly stashed stuff into the drawers when I didn't know where else to put it, otherwise ignoring the file cabinet. Meanwhile important documents (like my birth certificate and passport), files, and warranties were scattered around - in dresser drawers; in boxes full of coupons and an assortment of inkless pens and odd-sized bits of paper; even stashed into books and used as bookmarks.

Once I had begun to settle into my new apartment, I couldn't stand the disorganization any more. I went through the neglected old file cabinet one drawer at a time, sorting through mementoes from my past. Old photos and my son's baby book went into a labeled storage bin. Stray bits of paper, like the ancient typewriter warranty, went into the trash bin, and the tape recorder found a more appropriate home. I tossed the old letters; I couldn't remember why I had kept them in the first place.

As I went through the folders themselves, I saw that not one of them contained anything that I need today. They were filled with old vet bills for animals who are no longer with me, miscellaneous and outdated information from my days as a student, 15-year old bank statements, and ancient notes to myself. I emptied the folders of these useless contents, and began to create files for the things I need today. A file for current warranties, another file for important documents (the passport and birth certificate among them), and so on - they're even alphabetized!

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic