DeAnna Richard
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2011 DeAnna Richard
Smashwords Edition, License Notes.
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Simplicity Sucks
Simplicity
sucks. It sucks long and hard. There is no way around it. It’s for
crazy people who make their own granola and reuse toilet paper.
You’ll have to give up all your friends, car, iPhone, shoes and
sanity in order to live in a tent in the middle of some deserted
forest.
You
will only be able to eat berries that your forged yourself. Not to
mention vegetables that you stole from the capitalist farmer down the
street. Besides it serves him right for using electricity in the day
time!
You’ll
change your name to Moonbeam Sunflower and refuse to wear
underwear...It saves cloth and you secretly enjoy the freedom. You
shower only in the rain ( daily bathing is wasteful ) and dry
yourself with the cool evening breeze.
Or
you can go the lazy route. You can keep your friends, car, iPhone,
and sanity. Underwear is optional.
No
matter which path you choose to follow simplicity is hard work.
You’ll be forced to take a long hard look at not only the objects
in your life but the people as well. Simplicity involves a lot of
soul searching, and more courage than I have the skill to express in
this book.
The
simple life will kick your ass at every turn. There won’t be an
area of your life that isn’t affected.
That’s
why simplicity sucks. You really do have to be crazy in order to
change the entire flow of your life in the name of simplicity. Who
the fuck does that? Moonbeam Sunflower that’s who!
Your friends will think you’re crazy. You’re guaranteed to lose a few. Your family already thinks you’re crazy but they love you anyway. They’ll stick around simply for the entertainment factor. The objects and people who mean the most to you will stick around. Those that don’t will fade away.
Part 1
It Sucks
So
Lets talk about your stuff. Unlike everyone else I’m not going to
tell you that the way to simplicity is through becoming detached from
objects in your life. I’m not going to preach about the evils of
consumerism. I actually really don’t care how much you buy or you
own.
Buying
doesn’t complicate your life.
What
does complicate your life is becoming so focused on buying the next
best thing or keeping up with others that you lose track of the
things that mean the most to you. Besides if you don’t have a lot
to begin with being lazy is a whole lot easier. If you’re one of
those crazy people who like to work then you can spend time working
on things that you enjoy instead of dusting off figurines.
Lets
get this straight from the start. I am in no way advocating that
anyone should become a minimalist. There is no grand spiritual
awaking after you toss out all of your shit. You won’t become
instantly cool. You won’t get closer to whatever deity you believe
in. You won’t be a better person. You’ll just have less.
There
is a huge difference between choosing to have less and not having a
lot to begin with. That’s a point that most minimalist forget to
mention. They don’t want to be confused with being one of the
unwashed masses so they get very vocal about it being a life choice.
A lot of those people are full of shit.
I
grew up in a military family. Whether I liked it or not every two
years or so we had to pack up and move. I am also the oldest of six.
That meant that every time we moved or a new kid was born most of my
stuff had to go.
There
is no way you could convince eight year old me that I had too many
clothes or my favorite toys were clutter. I would have probably
punched you right in the sack.
I
also had a sister with very sticky fingers. I was still living with
my parents when I got my first grown up job. I had a corner in the
room I shared with said sister to keep my things. Everything I owned
fit into two big containers. I didn’t have a car so my day usually
started off with a lovely two hour bus ride at 6am and ended with me
running after the last bus at 7pm.
When
I came home I’d do my routine check to see what she’d stolen that
day. I started taping my containers shut to see if anybody went in
them when I was gone. When even the smallest thing was missing I was
devastated. I didn’t have a lot of money so everything I had was
valuable.
I
was and still am very attached to my things. I was always afraid that
they’d be taken away. When you’re constantly afraid that you’ll
have nothing you learn to hold on tight to whatever you do have.
People who say that having less makes you more have obviously never
had to fight to hold on to even the smallest comfort. Those people
can kiss my ass.
Things Vs Stuff
There
is a huge difference between things and stuff.
Things
add value to your life. Stuff doesn’t.
It’s
as simple as that. It doesn’t matter what the object is if looking,
touching, or having it near by gives you warm fuzzy feelings it’s a
thing. If you trip over, resent having to clean, or forgot you even
had it it’s stuff. Everyone needs more things but nobody needs more
stuff. When you get rid of stuff you have more room to enjoy what you
really care about.
Things
and stuff will be different for everybody. There is no definitive
list of clutter. Just check for the warm fuzzies. If it’s something
that you feel strongly about don’t let any self proclaimed internet
guru make you feel guilty for having it.
For
example I love books. I’ve sold and donated a lot that I don’t
read any more but every room in my home is still filled with them. I
love the way they look. I love that new book smell. Books have always
been my friend. They don’t ridicule or judge you. If they’re
disappointing you can simply choose another.
Most
decluttering guides will tell you that too many books are a bad
thing. You should only have what you’re reading at the moment. Only
hoarders have piles of books in the bathroom...I think you get the
drift.
To
me books are things. They add a huge value to my life. To others I
might be that weird nerdy girl with piles of books in her bed instead
of a lover...and it would be completely true. Books are cool and
nerds are sexy. Anyone who doesn’t agree can suck it.
Our
things are an outward projection of who we are. Don’t ever let
anyone make you feel guilty for being you.
The purpose of decluttering is to get rid of your stuff. Once you throw out those grocery list from 1993 and that closet full of old gifts that you hated but didn’t have the heart/receipt to get rid of you will have more room to enjoy the things that are important.
How To Get Rid Of Your Stuff
Figure
Out What’s Important To You
I’m
not asking you to go though and sort anything. Get out a piece of
paper and write down your top five priorities in life. They don’t
have to have anything to do with objects at all. Here’s mine.
1.
Me. (If you don’t care about you first then who will?)
2.
Family/Friends
3.
Learning
4.
Helping others
5.
Business
If
something doesn’t make me feel better about myself, connect with
family and friends, help others, or enable me to do business better I
don’t need it in my life. Use that list as a go to guide when you
get stuck.
If
something isn’t in line with your priorities or helping you achieve
greater things then do your really need it?
We’ll
bring back the book example. My books make me feel better about
myself. They also help me learn new things and do better business.
They stay. As you continue to do this you’ll notice that most of
the things that add value to your life line up with your list.
Even
if it’s just a small item that makes you feel good about you it’s
a keeper. Remember you are important. You are useless broken. You
can’t take care of anyone or anything if you can’t completely
function. If you really care about anything on your list be sure to
put yourself at the top.
Now
that you know what you’re looking for sorting will be a lot easier.
Make
A Plan
I
don’t care if you’re Superman or Superwoman decluttering is
exhausting. The reason why
most
decluttering either never gets done or doesn’t last is because
there is no plan behind it.
Someone
gets the urge to purge and throws out everything in the hall closet.
They didn’t take into consideration how much crap they’ve piled
up over the years. When it’s time to put the closet back together
things kinda just get shoved in and pushed where ever it looks
pretty. Two days later it’s back to hall closet hell.
That’s
how it goes without a plan. Pretty one day and the next all your hard
work is out the window. I don’t know about you but I’m lazy. Work
has to stay done for a long time because I don’t know when I’m
going to do it again.
So
make a plan. It’s not that hard.