Keep the momentos. Put them away where you don’t have to see them. I did that, and 13 years later have shown them to my daughter, who is amazed that I went out with anyone before her dad.
Honey
I just ended a relationship of 1 year with a girl i am living with who is currently in canada for a few months. So not only and I stuck with the mementos for the time being, I am stuck with her books, her clothes, her bed ( threw mine out) her dishes, her art on the walls, and the firghtening prospect thatwhen she finally finds an apartment in toronto, shes gonna have to come back here for a week to pack up all of her stuff.
After that I think its all going in boxes. i am really really hurt right now, but i suspect I will probably look back on her and our relationship affectionately someday. most of it anyway.
CJ
I have kept just about everything. We parted without acrimony, so the mementos remind me of happier days and give me hope that I will find them someday again. For me they are a source of strength rather than a hindrance.