If you consider a Thing, any Thing, it seems there are three things a Thing can do:
- enter your life
- stay in your life
- leave your life
And we've bought into such a lie about each of these!
We call shopping "therapy." We think that owning something is a passive state that doesn't sap energy or time from us. We think getting rid of something is painful and unfortunate. We mourn when a Thing breaks.
A world of meaningful liberation opens up when we realize that this is completely backwards!
Shopping and obtaining should be painful and avoided.
Holding on to things should be seen as actively taxing on our lives and resources.
Getting rid of things should be done with joy and eagerness! When something breaks, we should celebrate!
Let's look at each one of these options in more depth, with this fresh perspective:
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For a Thing to enter your life, you spend hours online "researching" which is the very best Thing. You spend time going to the store or meeting the seller, making the transaction, coming back home. You'll give away your money for it. You have to carry it into your home. You have to make a space for it. You have to tell your friends about your great, new Thing.
You spend time, money, emotions, and mental energy every time you invite a Thing into your life. Was this Thing worth it?
-
For a Thing to stay in your life, you have to maintain it. You have to push it aside when you want to get to another Thing sitting underneath or behind it. You have to recharge its batteries. You have to dust it. You have to pay its electricity bill. You have to give it some of your mental energy every single time you see it. You feel guilty for not using it enough. You feel jealous when your friend gets a Thing version 3.2 and you only have Thing 3.15. You have to wash it. You have to set it out or put it away when friends come over.
You spend time, money, emotions, and mental energy every day you keep a Thing in your life. Is this Thing worth it?
-
For a Thing to leave your life, you have to first make a decision to get rid of it. Then you have to find it and dig it out of its drawer. You have to locate a buyer on Craigslist and meet her. You have to drag it to the thrift store. You have to haul it to the dumpster.
You spend time, emotional, and mental energy to get a Thing out of your life.
But here, the difference is that once you get rid of it, it's gone! Unlike the other two choices, you won't have to keep spending your resources on it tomorrow. You're free!
Getting rid of stuff is obviously worth it. The first two steps—obtaining and maintaining things—sap energy from you and will continue to. The third option—getting rid of something—takes energy once, and after that you are free!
So What Are We To Do?
Now that we've seen the things a Thing can do, what's a minimalist to do? What's anyone to do who wants freedom from a stuff-centric life?
The short answer is: Grab a backpack, pack up your one laptop, two favorite books, three changes of clothes, and burn your house down.
The longer, more legal, and more practical answer is in part two of this article! Dun-dun-duh!
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Thanks for reading!
] chloe [
