The week before school was out, I was forced to live out of a suitcase. In that week it felt as though a massive weight was lifted off of my shoulders. All my stuff, my clothes, my shoes, my hats ... they were all gone. And it felt amazing.

Today I realized that I want to feel like that all the time.

So here I am, forcing myself to clean out my closet, trying to lift the massive weight of materialistic items off of my shoulders once again. The only problem? I completely underestimated exactly how heavy that weight is.

If you are anything like me then you associate shopping with happiness. For instance, have you ever found something at a store and thought to yourself, "If I just had this one thing then I would be so happy"? Well I know I have. I also know that this "happiness" you think you're buying isn't real. Let me tell you the painful but honest truth: real happiness does not come in a shopping bag. As much happiness you think that new dress or pair of shoes will bring you, it is only temporary. And pretty soon you'll be back in a store searching for something new.

So, because of this, I have come to realize that I, like many others, live an unnecessary overabundant lifestyle. Not only is this lifestyle unnecessary, but it is destructive. We are victims of consumerism and advertising; we were raised in a society where "more is better" and "enough isn't enough." Therefore this unnecessary lifestyle of buying things we don't need has become an accepted and normal part of our society.

So how do we change?

Well, we must teach ourselves to live simply. As a society we must learn to detach ourselves from material objects and disassociate them with happiness. I am not saying that you have to give up every single material object you own, but rather minimize what you have. I know it can be overwhelming, but start simple; just go into your closet and be honest with yourself. Get rid of the things you don't use and the clothes you don't wear, and begin lifting this weight off your shoulders.

"The best things in life aren't things." - Art Buchwald