Did You Ever Clean Out The Home Of A Deceased Person...

@peaceful (3294)
United States
September 5, 2008 5:55am CST
And Actually Have Fun Doing It? LOL! :) I am not a professional house cleaner, but I have wielded a mop and dust rag in my earlier days... So when one of my Clients passed away last week and her family asked me to take care of her home, I figured that this would be a job that I could do, despite the creepy-ness of going through all of the worldly belongings of someone that you have known for years. The fun started when I decided to work in the kitchen and I checked the fridge and freezer first, of course, so that I could discard any spoiled goods... To my surprise, my deceased client actually had a great sense of a Foodie when it came to stocking her pantry, and soon I was marveling at tins of Beluga caviar, handmade cheese's and dinner crackers... She also had a fine selection of wines and spirits and really cool collection of art on the walls of this old house! Yes, the place was fantastically filthy, but at least I was going to have an excellent Lunch and Dinner, with a fun time of browsing great art thrown in the mix! :) I was surpringly cheerful and energetic when I left the house for the evening, and despite the additional bugbites that I recieved, I had a big smile on my face at the thought of that crazy old lady and her love of the Good Life! :) Her niece told me yesterday that her aunt really did like me, inspite of the trashmouthing that her illness drove her to, and that made me feel really good for myself, but I had a bit if sadness for the family, if only she had let them be closer to her, it might have made a difference... No, I will not miss her, in fact it was a relief that she has Crossed... Leaving all of this wonderful stuff behind for me to enjoy, made up for all of the bitter b*tchiness in one second!
4 responses
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
7 Sep 08
yes , i have . when i was dealing w/antiques i did quite a few. a friend of my mother's let us clean out her mother'shouse & it was alot of hard work but we founf alot of treasures. she put them in my shop on consignment & we did quite well. i've also cleaned out other places & had a tag sales. as i said alot of hard work but i like doing it.
1 person likes this
@peaceful (3294)
• United States
8 Sep 08
With a username link yours, I willing to guess that you would be a Natural at jobs like this! My compliments to you!
@Chevee (5905)
• United States
7 Sep 08
I think that is a wonderful thing you did. I am aware of it being a job. I have not done anything like this I think if I had I would've had to have someone there with me. The fact that you will not miss her is sad, but each to their own feeling.
@peaceful (3294)
• United States
8 Sep 08
No, I won't miss her, because I was there for her... She was ready to go!
@GardenGerty (160949)
• United States
6 Sep 08
Well, I had to clean out stuff from my husband, my mother, my sister, and mostly it just makes me sad the stuff that they held onto, but no one wants or has room for. I of course knew these people well before they passed. I still am receiving junk from people to deal with and some of them have been gone ten or more years. Since these were family, I do miss them, in some ways, while knowing that they are in a better place.
1 person likes this
@peaceful (3294)
• United States
6 Sep 08
GG, with that built-in practicality that you seem to have, I would guess that it would be a natural thing for folks to turn to you in times like those... It's really an admirable trait that a lot of folks wish they could have in times of need!
@ShellyB (5241)
• United States
5 Sep 08
I am glad that you were able to make a good situation out of one potentially bad one. I have not had to do anything like that. The close I come to was my grandma's house and it was left to my aunts to do it.
1 person likes this
@peaceful (3294)
• United States
6 Sep 08
It was a surprise that the family wanted me to do this, and I immediately accepted because it just felt "right"!