I have been on a mission for a few years now to have less. I want fewer things and less stuff. I don’t want to get up each morning and have to make so many choices as I get dressed for the day. I want to stop storing the things that I am just storing and probably won’t use again. Just when I was making progress on my mission to have less I ended up with a lot of stuff that belongs to my parents. I had to move them and they couldn’t take it all with them.
It just about killed me to move some of their stuff into my basement after having removed so much of my own stuff but my goal isn’t to just toss out expensive pots and pans and boxes of irreplaceable family photos, but to get rid of anything that I have that I don’t use or enjoy.
When I get rid of stuff I try to recycle it or donate it to the local thrift shop. I have been able to sell a few items too. I think carefully about every item that I bring into the house. I try to rid myself of one unwanted or unneeded item each day. Yesterday it was an old plastic travel bottle half full of some kind of shampoo I couldn’t even identify. There are several websites dedicated to decluttering one item at a time.
There are resources and ideas for people who want to have less. I am not the only one. Just do a search on the internet about having less or “minimalism” One of my goals this year is to work toward a capsule wardrobe, which means paring down my clothing to 37 items per season. The idea is to have fewer pieces that I really love and will actually wear as opposed to more clothing that I mostly don’t wear.
What does this have to do with housing? Everything. My house is fairly small. I am thankful for that because I have less room for stuff.
We spend a lot of time and money on stuff when we might be better off having less and spending money on experiences or using it to create opportunities. Becoming attached to a lot of “things” just can’t be healthy.
If you have ever witnessed the behavior of a spoiled child it becomes apparent that the more we have the less we appreciate it all.
