Pieces of His Past

I was in my middle child's room changing the sheets after my mom's recent visit and made the mistake of hanging around in there for a little while looking at some of the things he left behind when he made his move to Rochester last fall.   I wasn't deliberately trying to make myself sad, but take a look at the picture:

This is the top shelf of his bookcase.  It holds artifacts of his whole life: favorite stuffed animals, his Kids' NIV Bible, a hacky sack, books I vividly remember reading to him at bedtime when he was in early elementary school, books he read himself during the summers of his college years, an old inhaler from his cross-country days, a pack of Buffalo Bills playing cards, and a commemorative glass mug from his college graduation.  Every time he comes home for a visit, I suggest that maybe he could go through some of the stuff in his room and decide what he wants to keep and what he's ready to part with.  I wouldn't mind getting rid of some of the clutter, but I really can't imagine going into his room and not seeing these pieces of his past on the bookshelf.  Suggestions?  If you're farther along on this path than I am, what did you do?  If you're not here yet, what clear-headed advice do you have?  For now (and probably for quite a while) these things will stay where they are, and I'll go on being happy and sad each time I look at them.