My (29M) girlfriend (30m) says I need to get rid of my dead wife’s stuff or she’s leaving
I first got married at the age of 18 to my girlfriend I’d had since age 15. We enjoyed 6 years of marriage together before she died in a motorcycle accident, leaving me broken for years.
A bit over one year ago (4 years after my wife’s passing) I met my current girlfriend at a work event and we really hit it off.
I’d decided that it was time for me to start looking for a serious partner again and that my wife would’ve wanted me to be happy.
My current girlfriend and I became more serious over time and we moved in together 2 weeks ago. I’ve talked with her extensively about my deceased wife and the mental health issues it brought to me and she has been nothing but supportive and loving.
The problems began after we moved in together. I have a small chest that I used to keep under my bed that has a few things that belonged to my deceased wife along with some photos of the two of us.
During the moving process my girlfriend noticed the chest and asked about it, so I explained what it was and showed her the contents. I didn’t really expect it to be a big deal, but since I showed her things have never been worse for us.
She sat me down that night and explained that because I still had the chest and wanted to keep it, it was indication to her that I hadn’t moved on from my deceased wife and that she doesn’t think she can continue the relationship unless I “get rid of it”. I was pretty shocked at this, and told her that I needed some time to think about it.
Well, it’s been two weeks now and I still don’t know what to do. My current girlfriend and I have had no major problems up until this point, and she’s asking me daily when I plan to get rid of it and says she can’t live in the same space as the chest.
I really don’t want to get rid of it but I want to continue my relationship with her as well. What can I say to get her to understand? Or am I being crazy by keeping those things for years?