Selling my house and preparing to move for the first time in almost eight years has me thinking a lot about the physical stuff we carry around this world with us.
We humans spend a lot of money just to move our stuff around with us everywhere we go.
There are entire companies that built up around the fact that we need places for all of our stuff. Storage companies, moving companies … they aren’t around to serve people – they are around to serve people’s stuff.
Think about all the money spent each day to check baggage. To take our stuff with us to our destination – and then bring it back again.
My husband and I rented a storage unit when we listed our house on the market. As all the staging experts say, we needed to “declutter” and make our small house less peronsal: so the people looking at it could envision their lives there, and not just see ours. We took down our wedding photos, we packed up what knick-knacks we had, and we purged.
And then we purged some more.
We downsized clothing stockpiles. I instituted a “no grocery shopping until our cupboards are really and truly bare” plan. I even went through and got rid of some of my books, which for those of you that know me in real life, is an utter miracle.
And we have survived.
In fact, the more stuff we got rid of, either by giving it to someone else or donating it to the local second hand store, the better we felt. The lighter our lives were. The easier it was to pick up the house. I don’t miss any of the stuff that was sitting around not being used.
We’ve learned to use the library more, and to borrow (and lend!) the things we only need once in a while. We’ve learned that the less we have to take care of, the happier we are.
There is one conflict that remains after learning to live a more minimalist lifestyle: how do I support other artists while still saying “yes” to less?
My love for art and desire to support artists & creators is in a constant battle with my frugality and tend toward minimalism.
My budget says, “Borrow it from the library and save the money.”
My heart says, “But won’t you want people to BUY your book when you finish writing it?”
My budget: “Do you really NEED to own that album? Or can you just pull up their YouTube channel and click play when you are in the mood to hear their music?”
My heart: “Buy the album! They will thank you – and the cover art is amazing and will look great on your shelf.”
Do these same dialogues go through your head when you are deciding whether or not to buy the book or bring home that print from the gallery you stumbled into on vacation?
How do you decide WHAT to buy and WHO to support?
For some great reading on minimalism, visit Joshua Becker’s “Becoming Minimalist” blog: www.becomingminimalist.com. His writing helped me take the first leap, and to realize that minimalism means different things for different people.
Ahh, this is a great question to raise. If you’re trying to minimize your stuff, there are some ways to support artists that don’t require owning a physical item: mention their work to friends, share your love for it on social media, give it as gifts, etc. For music, you could still buy the MP3s online without getting the CD. But I understand the dilemma. For books and music, I try to only purchase after I realize that I’ve been consuming a lot of that writer/musician’s free stuff. That way I know that I’ll actually read or listen and return to the item over time.
I agree, Alicia – I like to check the book out from the library, and then only buy it if I know that I want to read it again and again. I heard someone say the other day (or read it somewhere – I am not sure): “Every book worth reading is one worth buying.” I can’t decided whether or not I agree with that.