putting old stuff to a new use

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 06 Jul 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

january	06 Jul 2002
After reading through the antique thread, I decided to start another one, but on a bit of a tangent. How do you feel about using your own stuff that may have bad energies attached to it? Just today, I decided to unpack my cookware and knives from my previous marriage. I used them all of the time as cooking is my passion, but haven't touched them in 2 years. I really had no need to since I live back at home, but they were just sitting in the basement in a box. On one hand its a shame to not use such quality utensils and on the other I'm afriad of tainting anything positive, or perhaps a bit superstitious. Have any of you used goods from a divorce or break-up? Kitchen stuff, towels, furniture, jewelry? How do you get rid of any bad vibes? Also, have you ever gotten rid of anything to cleanse yourself of a bad association? Like smashing that horrifically ugly gilded vase your former evil mother-in-law gave you? (no, I didn't do that... seriously ;) Peace! ~ january

Fox	06 Jul 2002
I don't really think using your old cookware and knives could do any sort of harm if you're wanting to get them out again; not using them because of fear of negativity would probably just be superstitious and negative in itself. Of course, if you're getting strong negative vibes from them or if using them just brings back all the bad memories of your divorce, then it isn't a good idea. I have rid myself of things to cleanse myself of a bad association; when I was younger I got involved in petty theft because of the rush it gave me, but I always felt terrible afterwards. Even after I'd stopped, I still felt terribly guilty, so I gathered together all the things I'd stolen and threw them in the bin (I didn't want to give them away because I didn't want anyone else to get my bad energy). It was symbolic more than anything, but I released all the negativity I'd accumulated by that simple process.

Dark Inquisitor	06 Jul 2002
If something has too many bad memories attached to it, I will get rid of it. Give it to charity, or sell it . If someone has treated me so badly that I have to throw them out of my life, everything they ever gave me goes as well. If I think an item has something bad attached to it, I'll put it in the garage until I can get rid of it. I got a antique ceramic from a friend once that had a very bad feeling about it. I took one look at it and was completely repulsed by its' negative energy and I threw it in the garbage right away. I wouldn't even give THAT one away ! This was a gift from someone who had a complete personality change and was starting to do some strange things, so I can't be certain of exactly what was going on with the piece. You might try a thorough washing of your utensils, and then put them in the sun to try to get rid of negativity. Use your own positive energy to reclaim them all for yourself, if you are sure you would rather not have new ones. Tarotphelia

Liliana	07 Jul 2002
My mom once bought a cursed item on ebay. It was written in the description it was cursed, but it looked cool and my moms interested in such things so she got it, seeing the long list of stuff thats happened to people AROUND previous owners, not to the owners themselves. Kind of not believing it. Well she got it and people started getting sick and some of her friends stopped talking to her, just was a mess. She finally put it on ebay herself, and even took a loss on it, stating it was cursed and its entire history. She even asked the buyer if he was sure before she sent it to him, that she wasnt kidding. He said yes, and once he got it people around him started having problems, like a 23 year old coworker had a stroke and stuff. He said he was tempted to put it in a free bin somewhere lol Personally I would of exorcised it and buried it where it wouldnt be found, never would i of given it to someone else. So, if you see something for sale called a 3 legged devil fork, avoid it lol hmmmm is this even relevant to the thread? oh well :) :THP

zorya	07 Jul 2002
i think it would depend on whether or not you've released the negatives, such as anger, resentment etc, from your past. if you've accepted it and moved on, then a good "cleansing" should do the trick. on the other hand, hanging on to the stuff, may be part of a not wanting to let go. or wanting to hang on to some of the pain. if this is the case, i'd have to say sell it and buy new.

truthsayer	07 Jul 2002
in general, i throw away or give away things i closely associate w/ a person i had a bad experience w/. i only sell after i do a healing ritual like burying in salt or putting out in the sun. some things like wedding pix are more difficult to contend w/. many of the ppl in those pix are no longer living so i keep that w/ that perspective in mind. but personal things like clothes or jewelry? they're gone! i still use cookware from my first marriage. they remind me of my grandmother who's passed on. she gave them to me as a gift. if i can subsitute a good memory like above for a bad one then i keep items. if the cookware and knives give you enough of a bad feeling that you even have to ask here about it then i'd say yardsale them or give them away to a homeless shelter or some person in great need. unless you know the item will hurt someone else, the bad feelings are probably directed towards you or are your feelings towards those items.

jade	07 Jul 2002
i love to recycle and reuse so that mother earth doesn't have too much stuff to 'store' in her dumps. i feel that cleansing items works :D sorry this is short but my kids are reaaaally needing me right now. bye jade :D

Bella	08 Jul 2002
In general, it doesn't bother me to use the things I had from my first marriage--or my first husband. He bought me some nice jewelry, why should I get rid of it ;)? After all, we did get married because once upon a time we were happy together, and even though it got ugly towards the end, it's part of my life. I can't throw away the memories, and things are just that...things. But it took me a while to feel this way, so maybe if you wait, you'll feel ok about it. Having said that, I'm going to contradict myself just a bit. There was one item I didn't want when I left him...the beautiful brass bed. Took the bedroom set, but left him the bed--just didn't want to see it anymore.

january	08 Jul 2002
Well, I think I am going to keep the cookware and cleanse it as several of you have suggested. They have my energy all over them as I used them every day. The Henkels knives though were actually a gift from him and I just get a creepy feeling from them (he actually tried to atttack me with the big chef's knife). So, they're out of here! My grandmother once told me that its best to buy knifes for yourself because when given as a gift they can be symbolic of severing a relationship. Hmmm.... A couple of months ago I sold my china and jewelry. The dishes were not my taste to begin with and neither was the jewelry (controlling ex-mom-in-law picked them out }) ) I also donated my sheets and comforter to a homeless shelter. So when this awful humidity lifts and a clear sunny day is upon me, I'm going to take the pots outside and let the rays purify them. I may also pass them through sage smoke. ~ january

PurpleGoddess	08 Jul 2002
hey soul-sis, don't forget that cooking was and is your passion and the cookware will welcome you back with open arms. probably missed you! sit out there w/your pots/pans and cleanse yourselves together. releasing all the old and negative, chaotic happenings from your previous life and open yourselves up to your new positive and loving life! and since you live near the beach, that's the perfect place for any kind of ritual and spell work. i'm there all the time..fav spot is walnut beach...down passed the volleyball courts. know where i mean? just bring the bug spray! love, peace and hugs :TQC :THP :CL

floracove	08 Jul 2002
When I divorced my ex I gave him all the things that were ours. I did not want to look at them, After what he put me thru I figured I'd let them drive him nuttier than he was, instead of me... That may have been a mistake, because it finally took having him arrested several times before he stopped his stalking of me, And I do mean STALKING, the man had shot holes in most of my of my windows and would break in at night, I hung bells over the doors so I would know if he were coming in, Mother would not let me keep a gun for fear of killing him. Eventually I think that he got tired of having to be put in jail and thank goodness he finally found someone who could handle him! Yes, I do get rid of anything that holds bad memories or vibes for me, including pics; even if I have to cut others out!

january	09 Jul 2002
Quote: Originally posted by floracove Yes, I do get rid of anything that holds bad memories or vibes for me, including pics; even if I have to cut others out! LOL, Floracove!!! My family photo album is full of holes. My great-grandmother HATED her ex-husband and took it upon herself to cut his face out of every picture. It was cleansing for her then and it makes us smirk now, so I guess we all win (except that I have no idea what my great-grandfather looked like...) PG - Thank you! Maybe if I go down to Walnut Beach, I should bring some lobsters and we'll have a cook-out awith my pots after the cleansing!!! Bring the lemons!! Peace! ~ january

PurpleGoddess	09 Jul 2002
and some nice white wine, some french bread, corn on the cob and lots of smiles and laugh! i just found out what my great grandfather looks like for the first time this weekend. cousin has all the pictures. and some of my grandfather too...got to meet him as well as other family thru photos. it was cool. you just reminded me that i need to do some cleansing for myself. i've got some things from my last real relationship i think that are down in the basement...time to burn the cards & letters and throw away the little mementos. i'll be at walnut tomorrow around sunset if i can find them! hopefully the breeze cooperates..last time the candles wouldn't stay lite...annoying! cousin feels that past pain is holding me back from actualizing my dreams of what i want to be when i "grow up" and allowing a loving man into my life. also freeing my psychic energy..i'm holding back because of the pain.... peace and love! :TQC

Lightlike	12 Jul 2002
Quote: Originally posted by floracove When I divorced my ex I gave him all the things that were ours. I did not want to look at them, After what he put me thru I figured I'd let them drive him nuttier than he was, instead of me... That may have been a mistake, because it finally took having him arrested several times before he stopped his stalking of me, And I do mean STALKING, the man had shot holes in most of my of my windows and would break in at night, I hung bells over the doors so I would know if he were coming in, Mother would not let me keep a gun for fear of killing him. Eventually I think that he got tired of having to be put in jail and thank goodness he finally found someone who could handle him! I'm sorry that he put you through all of that and I also pity whoever he's with now. She doesn't know what she's in for. :( :( :(

Kismet	21 Jul 2002
I cannot say I've ever had anything negative in my possession but had never thought of such til this post. I can say that I had quite a few belongings from my boyfriend when he passed and one thing I immediately began doing was giving things away that he would wish to be given. For example, I found out of his passing Friday evening, when returning to the hotel to gather belongings there Saturday morning I was made aware of a family with two toddlers that were needing food. There is a charity group called "Hope House" for men battling addiction and homeless his clothes go to. My grief councilor has a roomate dying from cancer that is unable to work as normal people. She is very computer literate, so I gave all my boyfriend's computer parts to her and she now has 2 computers, one for her and one for her daughter. If items can be negative, I believe there can be a positive as well. Love and Light, Kismet

amyel	21 Jul 2002
I eventually get rid of it. Some I just let go....for example, I lived in a house with a bunch of folk for a year, and when I left for a 6 month stay in Australia, I packed up all but the stuff I didn't care about...and "let" it go away.....

mermaiden	25 Jul 2002
Well, I wouldn't be too worried if I were you. My mom still has the knife from her wedding cake cutting ceremony and we use it on a regular basis (my parents are divorced, btw (I should mention that cuz it's an important fact for this opinion *LOL*)) It's marked w/their wedding date, name, etc. and frankly, we couldn't be happier, it's never even occurred to me to be bad in any way. In fact, she has a few other things from their marriage (ie. wedding gifts) and we never have given it a second thought. NOTE: we've had this stuff (and they've been divorced) for over 10 years so that should show that nothing bad has come out of having that stuff around the house. :) Overall, there's a lot of love, laughter and positive energy here. :D

PurpleGoddess	25 Jul 2002
Quote: Originally posted by mermaiden Well, I wouldn't be too worried if I were you. My mom still has the knife from her wedding cake cutting ceremony and we use it on a regular basis (my parents are divorced, btw (I should mention that cuz it's an important fact for this opinion *LOL*)) It's marked w/their wedding date, name, etc. and frankly, we couldn't be happier, it's never even occurred to me to be bad in any way. In fact, she has a few other things from their marriage (ie. wedding gifts) and we never have given it a second thought. NOTE: we've had this stuff (and they've been divorced) for over 10 years so that should show that nothing bad has come out of having that stuff around the house. :) Overall, there's a lot of love, laughter and positive energy here. :D it sounds like your parents split in good humor. you're lucky. some aren't as lucky. in fact for me, i've gotten rid of everything from my childhood, adolescence and early adulthood because of the chaos it represented. my parents are still together but that's when the hieght of the dis-ease was and i have enough trouble letting it all go...thank goodness i just have pictures that hide the pain of what i was going through...i've almost come out the other side. peace

The putting old stuff to a new use thread was originally posted on 06 Jul 2002 in the Chat board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Chat, or read more archived threads.