Have you became less sentimental over the years? (boyfriend, father, husband)

[HappyFarm34]

I used to be really sentimental taking photos & scrapbooking. Looking back at some of the photos, I ask myself, who are these people? Or the ones I thought I was close to only bring me painful feelings. Some had passed on. It took me a long time to adjust to the fact that most people come & go.

So now, I learned not to get overly attached to people. It's better for my mental health to live in present and try to avoid associating negative things of the past like loss of friendship that a lot of energy & time was invested into & death of a few family members, close friends. I feel more positive by living in the present and positive memories.

Now, I limit most photos to vacations & new places. Rarely, I will keep a photo that includes someone else. Usually when that happens, it's a family member or relative. Even pets, as adorable they are, I also limit pictures of them.

[Pitt Chick]

I have gotten MORE sentimental as I get older.
And I guess I differ from you as I value relationships. I spend MORE time with friends and family as I know we all will die one day. I value the time we can spend together NOW.

[theluckygal]

Over the years you realize that the people who will stick by you are close family, unless you have major differences with them & part ways. Any normal family goes through ups & downs so you go through a rebellious phase where you start believing that strangers can replace your family but they have no such attachment towards you. Even best friends move on with their lives & lose touch. But your immediate family will keep tabs on you. Eventually you realize that blood is thicker than water so you try to reconnect with your kin. Even your cousins might relate to you & your issues better than a friend as they grew up in the same family & understand how crazy they can be sometimes. Its difficult to realize this when you are much younger as you have the whole world to explore but after betrayals, heart breaks, back stabbing, indifference from strangers, you go back to your roots. You are lucky to find 1-2 friends in your lifetime who can love & care for you as much as your family does. What you are going through is perfectly natural. I have been through all these stages & I tell my younger sister not to avoid the family for friends. Friends leave but family will always be there for you so try reconnecting with your cousins & include them in your life. You grew up with some of them & have so many childhood memories to cherish so you can relate to them on a personal level. Thanks to social media, its so much easier to keep in touch with everyone. I have shrunk my friend circle over the years & try to invest time staying in touch with close family.

[Miss Hepburn]

As I get older and see this place is not real...I don't care much about yesterdays.
I see what counts...where I'm at every moment.

[Vectoris]

As I get older, I find memories and nostalgia wonderful, and enjoy time with family more. I am much less sentimental about objects, eg. concert ticket stub of my first date, wedding announcements, Hmmmm, not true. I have dragged a box of old letters around with me for the last 40 years. lol. Penfriends, boyfriends, best friends. Ok nevermind

[CFoulke]

I'm not very sentimental any more about STUFF. My hubby and I don't have kids and I don't feel a need to hold onto tangible items much any more. Who are we going to pass stuff on to anyway? I have a sister - older than me. She has all the "stuff" she needs too. I have some nieces and nephews - some I am close to and some not. There are a few items that I have in my possession that belonged to my parents that I will make sure get to my nieces and nephews - but other than that - nah...

The stuff that I truly treasure are my memories. They are precious only to me...because they're mine. When I go, they go with me. My husband is a packrat - and I can only hope that I go before him. I have no idea what the hell I would do with all of his "stuff"!!!

I came here with nothing and I'll leave here with nothing. That's probably the way it's supposed to be, after all.

[The Dissenter]

Yep, not sentimental at all anymore. I always throw my birthday cards away when I get them, no use keeping useless crap in my small apartment. The only things that mean anything to me in my place is the flag that was over my father's casket and my college diplomas. Other than that I won't shed a tear over anything else.

I don't get too attached to folks either. Learned that lesson the hard way.

[Mattie]

Like the others, I have very little desire to hold onto belongings from my past. A couple we knew lost everything in a fire a few years back. The woman was still crying over her "stuff" two years later! It wasn't as though they weren't well compensated via insurance, they rebuilt a house much nicer than the one they lost.

Certain things from my boys' childhoods have some sentimental value. I made up one large plastic bin per boy. They are still in my storage room, the boys didn't seem interested in them. But, maybe someday they will.

But I still haven't divested myself of all the things I won't miss. That's a daunting job, and it's easier just to leave it packed away.

[Pitt Chick]

Oh, I have managed to purge plenty recently. And I have gotten some great tax credits from the donations to my local YWCA Thrift Shop.
I have always been organized, but for the past decade I have been decluttering. We (DH and I) are down to things we find useful or derive joy from.
It is wonderful to not be a slave to "stuff"!

[Sickandtiredofthis]

No. I have become more sentimental!