Dusty Paper

I need to write about dusty paper. I have piles and boxes of letters, sketches, books, and notes-to-self scraps all over my studio. Why, I ask myself, do I keep everything? Why can't I throw away 17-year-old paper? Going through my avalanche-prone piles would be agony because I feel pangs of regret throwing anything out. I am so sentimental. It would take years. But I can imagine how lovely it would be to clear this stuff out and have space for my current paintings. Most of my paper is from my previous career as a book, magazine, and newspaper illustrator. My office is now just a dust factory.