People love having things. We all have our favorite things that we own, the things we will never part with, and the things we just want to own to say we have it. Having the ability to buy what you want is a rewarding feeling, addictive in fact, because a lot of the things we buy make us feel better about ourselves in one way or another. We spend outrageous amounts of money on things we want, just because everyone else has it, and because if you don't have it, well you're pretty much a social outcast. I'm obviously one of those people, I love the things I have. But how much stuff can we possibly have before it traps us in our own manufactured reality?
This past weekend, I helped my parents get rid of a whole lot of junk in my house. We got a HUGE dumpster and everything because we knew we could no longer live with a lot of these things that were taking up once empty spaces in our too-big house. At least with my family, we had the room to put all this this stuff, so what was the harm in buying it? Well, after 3 exhausting days of decluttering, I can tell you the harm.
In the matter of three days we emptied my 3 story house. When we first got the dumpster, I initially thought we wouldn't possible be filling it up, because well, how much do we really have? Well, the answer was a lot because we ended up filling it up completely. It's so full that I'm worried stuff will be flying all over the place when the dumpster people come to take it out of our driveway. I never would have thought in a million years that all of this stuff would add up. They say that when you buy new clothes, you need to get rid of clothes that you haven't worn in over a year, and honestly, the same should apply for random objects like games, toys, or even decorations. Do you really need 16 Easter baskets and 13 different kinds of tape? I don't think so. Materialism is a dangerous thing, and once you have the means to purchase what you want, or if you have parents who are able to get you what you want, it quickly becomes a dangerous game.
Seeing different pieces of my life getting thrown into the dumpster was hard, but with those pieces of my life, there were pieces so insignificant, I can't even tell you what they were for, or why we had them. Our stuff quickly turned into junk, and we just watched it literally pile up before our eyes because we thought we needed it. Of course I need this game because blah blah blah, and of course I need this bag because it's green and not blue. You can justify a purchase all you want; you have the right to buy what you want when you want. But just beware of how quickly the stuff will add up, because if you're not careful, you'll be trapped in a too big home with your material goods surrounding you, unable to escape.
Take some time to go through all of your belongings, and think about whether or not this item is any good for you in the long run? Do you really need that Kindle even though you usually read books? Do you need a Mac AND a PC because some programs work better than others, or do you need three types of the same thing because all of the colors are different? Who knows? It depends on your needs. Just don't let your dependency on stuff overtake your life, because life is too short to slowly turn your world into plastic.
Instead, spend your money on experiences because chances are, the experience will have a better impact on your life in the long run than the newest iPhone model. Go to a movie, go to a film festival, go see that band you can't live without. Instead of getting a new eyeshadow or tool, go to a fair. Spend your time and money on things that truly do matter, and not the things that won't in the end.
