My dad recently died and me and my brother had to go clear up his house for sale. It was pretty unsettling feeling, the laundry was still in basket, his jacket against the chair, recent shoppings still unwrapped. Everything was like he just had stepped out for a minute. It felt wrong to clear out his things to boxes even if every logical cell in your brain told you no one would be using those things any more...Walking around the house, finding things he was planning to do, looking at the boxes wondering on how small space can one persons entire life fit...This is first time I've had to deal with all of this and unfortunately i'm young enough to have to deal with them many times more.

 

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I'm sorry for your loss and can sympathize with the issue you're facing, having dealt with it myself a number of times in the last 10 years or so. Find closure in the acts, celebrate your good memories by reliving them through the familiarity of your dad's presence amongst the trappings of his interrupted life there and take care.

 

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Yup. It is something good to face up to, though. Everyone should help close friends/family in times of need to do this, at some point. Not just the physical parts, but the social and fiscal and emotional parts.

It helps you think about your own death, and how you want to leave things when you go. Perhaps unexpectedly.

It's a good motivator.

 

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Test your description is very existential. I have some very close memories of this which are still haunting. Imagine trying to clean up after someone committing suicide?

I use to visit a public storage unit where I kept some things during a move and i felt like I was visiting the grave site of my stuff.

 

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Hang in there!

 

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I helped clear out my uncle's condo after he overdosed on sleeping pills. Not fun at all.

 

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Whats creepy is that while we were there for a weekend, both me and my brother kept waking up 3am all three nights...we dont know the time of his death.

Neither of us usually believe in paranormal yet we'll be staying at hotel during funeral.

 

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I remember cleaning out my Grandmother's house after she died. I was 11 or 12, and I went with my mom to help.

She was a hoarder. Bad.

But none of us really knew. Before my grandfather died their house was messy, but it was never too bad. After she died she always came to visit us. We never went there.

She died right before Christmas. She was actually in the process of wrapping our presents when she went into diabetic shock and died. In the living room were half wrapped Christmas presents, and a sad little fake Christmas tree. This room wasn't too bad. Unkempt, but not beyond what you might expect the average sloppy person to have.

The kitchen was filled with dirty dishes, the sink was disgusting. The refrigerator was filled with spoiled food. The floor was covered in sand. This room was overwhelming. The stench was unforgettable.

The two bedrooms were filled with piles of unwashed clothes, and a lot of papers and books. While sorting through the clothes and closets we found multiple dead rats at various stages of decomposition.

She must have been miserable there alone.

Her neighbor next door said that all she talked about was how much she missed my Grandfather. I remember telling my mother that maybe seeing my Grandfather was God's early Christmas present for her. She agreed.

Tough stuff. Sorry for your loss.

 

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Test
I lost my dad last year and had to go thru the very same thing. It gets better. Its also good for you to face this now and handle everything that needs to be taken care of.

Also



Remember this experience. You don't have to make it anything more than what it is, but also don't let it be dismissed by others when you are experiencing something unexplainable with others that are experiencing the very same thing.

 

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