I saw this picture for the first time the other day. It shocked me. These were all the possessions that this man had. Rather than feeling demoralized, he was calm and honorable in his actions. The items before you represented everything important to him: sandals to walk around, a watch to tell time, a foundational text for focus and intellect, and glasses for the simple necessity of sight. Stripped of everything extraneous, this man could be freed to become one of the greatest heros of all time. Before I talk about the owner of these possessions, let’s talk about our possessions.
What does your picture look like?
I don’t know whether to be saddened, inspired, apathetic, neutral, and/or happy, but I can now fit everything I own into a single room. Walking through my apartment, I almost expect to see a tumbleweed race across the linoleum floor. It’s barren. I don’t necessarily feel exceptionally positive, as there’s a societal expectation for stuff that I cling to.
Magazines like Dwell and websites such as Apartment Therapy emphasize how home designs affect emotionality. The model home is well-kempt, orderly, and colorful — energizing its inhabitants and providing a sense of calm. But despite these stereotypes and assumptions about design, by paring down my accoutrements, I feel calmer. With the extraneous emptied, I can focus and save for what’s important.
Even though I can fit everything into a room, it’s far greater than the preceding picture. Could I reduce my possessions even further? Perhaps.
What if your house flooded tomorrow?
This past weekend I traveled with a friend to Minnesota. It was my first time in the Twin Cities. I loved every minute. Before I left, I packed and scanned over my apartment.
Every time I travel, I look over the bag and apartment for missing items. I ask, “What am I forgetting?” Only one thing came to mind: I heard that my area of town may be flooded when I return. I moved two cheap electronics above the floor and left.
Leaving rapidly and with such efficiency made me think:
- That was faster than ever
- I feel really free
- I want to do that again and again and again
In the past, I worried about the condition of my possessions. Would they be safe? How long could I be away from home? This time, I didn’t hesitate — these things wouldn’t hold me back from hopping in my friend’s car and celebrating the holiday. If my house flooded — thankfully, it didn’t — I would’ve probably suffered some losses. But in the end I would be okay.
How do you make your picture look like that?
Many people own TVs, cars, and houses. The picture frame doesn’t seem to fit our countless commodities and material goods. We’ve amassed stuff to fill our homes and heads. We can’t even collect and commingle it all for a friendly picture. This leaves us open to feeling loss and ache.
The photo above is a collection of all Gandhi’s worldly possessions. Gandhi fueled a movement for Indian independence from British rule. His message was of peaceful civil disobedience. Today, he’s an inspiration for civil movements around the world. He only had about 14 or 15 items.
How many things do you need to live the life you want? How many products do you need to be happy and live with purpose? Oftentimes, buying more products limits our ability to live meaningfully.
When we crave for more than the picture frame can hold, money must be made. Suddenly, we are working harder, longer hours to consume more. It can come at the cost of our free time and life we want to lead.
Good timing for me as I just narrowed down my possessions once again. I can live day to day with the amount of stuff that can easily fit inside my 2-door coupe. I still have a lot of clothing and tools at my parents house but I’m okay with that extra stuff (and so are they haha).
I understand what you mean about society looking down on minimalism. I’m sure more than one person has told you you’re crazy for purging your amount of stuff..
What a powerful image! Mine would be, shall we say, more resembling a major aisle in a huge big box store. I oscillate between wanting to get rid of everything and enjoying the stuff that I do have, because it all serves some purpose.
I think, if I could get my family on board, that having fewer possessions would be freedom. Freedom from constantly picking up toys around every turn. From having so many dishes that I have to empty the dishwasher, reload it and immediately restart it. From having to dust each and every knick knack on display in a large house. Basically, I just think we’d be cleaner people. Cleaner makes me happy, though 🙂 if I took a picture of all our stuff, it would be a messy pile of mostly junk that would crowd most people out of their two car garages. Sobering in comparison!
I’m still thinking of trying the “take a picture of all your sentimental valuables and then give the objects away” idea. I’ve minimalized beyond what I could ever imagine is possible, and yet, I still want to go further. Is this, too, an OCD?
Karomi,
That’s actually a wonderful option! I have thought about that at times — taking a picture and letting the actual physical object go. It certainly depends on the reason for selling it away. For me, I’ve been desperate to get my budget and savings back to square one, and that’s led me to purge everything extraneous.
Thanks for your continued comments and support,
Sam
“…by paring down my accoutrements, I feel calmer.” Yes. Love that. Every time I purge, I feel SO much better. Purging becomes addictive and I start to really question whether something else should make its way into the house. I just don’t want the baggage anymore (worry, maintenance, storage, sorting/rearranging). There are better uses for our time and resources.
Thanks for the encouragement! It’s been exceptionally therapeutic to reduce my belongings. Glad I have company in the minimalism game. 🙂
I have a very big problem with possessions: I have far too much and don’t manage to give away enough. I have problem getting rid even of my running t-shirts (there is alwasy this ‘oh, I remember doing this race). One day very soon I’ll tackle this one.
I can currently fit everything I own into a 35L hiking backpack. I’ve been a minimalist my whole life, even as a kid, though I didn’t know what it was at the time. I just feel chained down by things I own. Though I won’t be moving again for at least a year while I finish college, I don’t feel the urge to buy a lot of stuff. I spend my money on eating out, and buying good coffee, the things that are important to me.
Thru hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2010 also helped me pare down my possessions, I lived out of a backpack for 5 months, and it was an amazing journey. Also, the practical skills I learned in the military and taught myself, as well as long hikes, taught me I could handle the “worst” that would probably be catastrophic to most people, like homelessness, living with little or no money, ect.
The few items I do own are simple and high quality. All my clothing is fast drying synthetics I can wash in a shower and hang to dry if needed. Basically practical hiker clothing. I also have long hair, saving money on haircuts and offering more warmth and sun protection. I have also sewed repairs with a hair and a tiny needle, though I sew with dental floss.
Overall, the “philosophy” of hiking really helped me pare down my possessions. The only thing I have “bulky” now is my gaming laptop and a couple of sidearms.
I was almost doing it: no tv for more than 6 years, few clothes, books replaced by ebooks and a reasonable number of records (which are the thing I cannot live without) then my partner improved his financial situation and started to fill the home with a new, big tv, furnitures for DVDs and records and some other stuff.
While I love having records around I hate seeing my living room a lot fuller than before. I find it to be chaotic and suffocating. I am continuing with my journey to pare down the rest of my possessions, though.