Sorry for the lack of posts recently y’all! I’ve been working on these Gratitude Manifestations, one of which was the gratitude for a job I greatly enjoy and challenges me, and well, it has come to fruition and filled my plate with a ton of work, but I have now found the pace to get back into writing, and will continue to do so!
The best things in life aren’t things.
This one isn’t so much a quote as it is a statement passed on for thousands of years. For the past few months, I have begun to repeat this phrase, and by way of repetition, understand its meaning more and more.
I have found, over and over, that the purpose of life, at least as mine is concerned, includes people. The relationships and experiences spent with the ones I love, admire, and get to know, have strengthened this revelation.
Additionally, living with less has taught me to appreciate more. More time, more energy, more ideas, more travel, and more opportunities.
It’s when I break down the idea of possession that I find this truth: I don’t own a single thing (the posture of Stoicism).
Yes, you hear that right. Everything I had, have, and will ever have is borrowed. My car and everything in it is borrowed from resources of the Earth, from the air I breathe to the body I inhabit is borrowed for a few years and then returned to the Earth.
We are but animated shells on this ride called life, and it’s this realization that helps me put it all in perspective and feel so grateful for these gifts. For this shared, human experience.
But why then do we hold ever so tightly onto the things (tangible and intangible) as if they will remain in our lives forever?
Because of a little unknown word called enculturation, which teaches us to desire and strive for the things and people we want so we can experience and “have” them for ourselves.
We are indoctrinated to think and act with enculturation, and it takes constant practice and mindfulness not to give in to it, and even then we still do.
This isn’t to say things don’t matter. Every post on this blog, this post, was typed on a laptop that I enjoy using, from a company that makes consumer goods I’m particularly attached to (I’ll let you guess which one).
But I remind myself often that these are things for my usage alone, and therefore, I shouldn’t get particularly attached to them.
Should I be robbed or lose these things, life will go on (quite literally). If we don’t remember to use things for their proper purposes, they can, over time, rob of us the truth that the best things in life aren’t things, but rather the people and experiences we have throughout our lives.
So, you probably asking by now, Josh, what are the damn 6 ways to live with less?
- Take on the minimalism game – So every time I mention this challenge, people freak out and already give up. It’s not necessarily a challenge to become a minimalist, but rather minimize the clutter in your life! Just try it for a week at least!
- Keep a box or bag in your room or common area to put things in that no longer serve a purpose in your life.
- Go through your phone’s apps, photos, videos, and documents; deleting the things that you forgot were buried in there.
- Also go through your computer’s apps, photos, videos, and documents; and save the things you want or need to the cloud.
- This might sound counter-intuitive, but turn your phone (and computer) screens to monochrome, which will make your devices boring as shit, and you will be far less fixated on the stuff on them.
- When we stare at screens much less than we stare at our friend’s faces, we begin to live with less, less of all that is advertised on our screens!
Consider today those closest to you. Spend time with them if you can, or just call them up and thank them for being in your life.
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