What’s one item that you really should throw out but never will?

One useful bit of advice given to me is that if we have things we haven’t used or remembered for a year then it’s time to throw them away to avoid clutter in our cabinet. But there are things that are just simply hard to let go of because of their sentimental value, or because we feel that one day we might find a need for it and regret that we parted with it; or perhaps we purchased it at a high price, making it too valuable to throw away.

Whatever it is, for as long as it makes you feel good to keep such an item, it’s reason enough for you not to throw it away.

WENDY PUYAT HOTUNG, swimwear/ graphic designer: I’m terrible. I hardly throw anything out because the object has either sentimental value or I think that maybe it will be of use again one day and I will regret having thrown it out.

MALOU CORONEL DE VENECIA, marketing and communications director, Cinderella: It took me a while to decide on the answer. As a mother of four growing children — three girls and a boy — I always get notes and cards of different uneven shapes and colors that my children have been giving me during special occasions like my birthday, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Christmas and other occasions. Through the years I must have collected boxes of them. As I grew older and wiser, looking back at these special cards made me a happy mom. I will always cherish and treasure their expressions of the love. I consider myself lucky and I thank the Lord for all the blessings I have received from Him.

JEWEL MAY LOBATON PIMENTEL, Bb. Pilipinas Universe ’98: I have a closetful of things from paper tickets to other stuff that I need to throw out but up to now I just cannot let go of them. Honestly, I don’t throw away things that have sentimental value. Since these things accumulate over time, the most that I can do is give some to people dear to me whom I know will surely take care of the things I pass on to them. I am contemplating giving a dear friend the native bag my husband Koko gave me when we were vacationing in the US. The bag is simple but very special. Every time I think of giving it away, I vividly remember how my heart was thumping when Koko gave it to me.

WOWIE RIVERA, businessman: Old pictures, because no matter how I hate the way I looked then, these pictures will always remind me of the good and bad times. And the people who have become a part of my life. I can’t imagine telling my son stories without showing him pictures of how things were back then.

CESAR MONTANO, senatorial candidate: An old Abercrombie gray cap. I can’t throw it away no matter what.

ALI Z. TIONGSON, technician, Essensuals Toni & Guy: A pillow that I’ve had since I was seven years old. It originally belonged to my dad and I got it from him. I have shed all my tears on it — both tears of joy and sadness. Since my dad passed away in 2001, all the more I can’t part with my pillow.

IZZA GONZALES AGANA, businesswoman: The one item I should have thrown away but never will is a half-used bottle of Coco Chanel perfume. This was the first Christmas present my husband ever gave to me way back in 1989.

GLENN ANTHONY O SOCO, entrepreneur: My volleyball uniforms. Though worn-out and outdated, they remind me of the simple joys of a young, competitive athlete and the lack of complications of school life. These uniforms somehow inspire me to keep the passion I always have for whatever I set my heart on.