Sally’s Closet

Every time she opened the closet door she would see all the dark and dreary undecorated boxes. Without realizing it, Sally soon began collecting all kinds of emotions and most of them were not happy ones until one day Sally could hardly shut the closet door. So she pushed and she shoved and she pushed some more until Sally heard the latch go click.

She sighed a big sigh, “Ah, I am so glad that is over.” She decided right there and then that she would just walk away and never, ever as long as she lived would she ever open that closet door again…she would be just fine. “That way”, she told herself, “I will never remember all the bad memories and never have to feel lonely, sad, hurt or angry again. I will never look at those ugly boxes of negative memories any more and that is that!”

Then one night as Sally lay in her big comfy bed, just settling in to think thoughtful thoughts and dream dreamy dreams she heard a very strange sound. It was coming from her closet! What could it be? The big wooden door began to shimmy and shake, creak and vibrate as though it were coming alive. Slowly, Sally got up out of her big comfy bed and even more slowly made her way over to the closet door and even more slowly yet, placed her now shaking hand on the latch. It had been a very long time since Sally had put any memories in there. She thought it was better to forget the past that way she would never have to face the shadow side of her emotions.

Sally hesitated, what if she didn’t like what she saw? How would it make her feel? It was at that moment that Sally realized it had been a very long time since she had felt anything at all.

Maybe she could just go back to her bed. Yes, that was what she would do. It was better not to know what was inside that closet, easier not to feel emotions at all. Just as Sally was turning to go back to her big comfy bed the door burst open and banged loudly as it swung back and hit her bedroom wall. Boxes came pouring out like a mighty flood; big boxes, small boxes, gray, black and brown boxes. As each one fell, its lid came flying off spilling emotions everywhere and in the middle of all this chaos sat Sally. All those plane, ugly boxes that she had allowed to fill her closet now were strewn around her and all over her bedroom floor.

Sally began to cry. Everywhere she looked were open boxes displaying negative emotions.  All the sadness, loneliness, bitterness, hurt feelings and anger was pile high around her, almost smothering her. Memories came flooding back.