Our Love Affair With Stuff

Once my grandma said to me, "You have too much stuff."

It was a comment made in passing without a lot of fanfare, but after I thought about my stuff for a long while.

What is all this?

When my husband and I first were married, we lived in a 1300 square foot, two bedroom townhouse that was bursting from the seams. We had a 10 x 10 storage locker filled from edge to edge and floor to ceiling. A few years back we moved in to a 3000+ sq.ft. house and recently added a 14 x 14 addition.

I say this not to brag about my ostentatious living conditions, but because I still do not have enough space to store everything. My three car garage holds one car and a bunch of stuff; my 1000+ square foot basement is a glorified storage closet.

Friends, we have a problem.

We are having a love affair with our STUFF.

We hold onto our things with a fiery passion waiting to use them, to show them, all the while taking comfort that they are there.

But, is it really comforting? I would venture to say, "No."

So then, why?

Why do we keep it? Why do we buy more? Why are we so in LOVE with our things?

Life has provided us with a culture of security through more.

More money, bigger houses, more things, more activities, more friends, more this more that.
More. More.

MORE.

Needless to say, less is a novel concept.

I've been wrestling with this idea of less for a while, not because of what I want; I know what I want. I want to clean up less, I want to spend less time distracted, I want to lessen my impact on the environment. That is what I want.

But, what will others think of me?

What will others think when I purge my purse collection? When I don't buy brand name items in order to save money? When my children get one or two gifts at Christmas? When my relatives get homemade gifts or gifts of time? When I ask for no gifts at all? When my TV isn't bigger than theirs? When I'm take a break from Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, texting, and my phone? When I donate or sell perfectly good things? When my children don't participate in multiple activities? When we learn to say no instead of yes?

What will they think of...ME?

Am I able to be secure in the fact that others need to see me for myself and not defined by my things, my time, my money, my experiences? Can they just see who I am? Can I be who I am with less?

What will others think of me when all I can offer is my time, my affection, my listening ears, my authenticity, and my undivided presence?

Is there enough of me to be significant with less?





My post was inspired by reading this.