When Keith and I emigrated to Canada we had our house packed up and the contents shipped about 8 weeks before us. We kept 2 cups, 2 plates, 2 knives and forks, some towels and linen. Friends lent us a blow up mattress and a TV. The house was empty, we ate out a lot and we lay on the floor at night and watched TV. And frankly, it made no difference to me at all. I realized that not only could the entire contents of my life fit in to a truck, but also that I could quiet easily live without it all. I say "I", because I am not sure that Keith would agree.
We move a lot. Each time we move we get rid of stuff and while it always amazes me at how much we accumulate I am grateful that we don't hoard or have too much sentimentality attached to things. It still amazes me each time we move that our entire life can fit into 50 boxes and the back of a truck.
When I was younger I had a far greater attachment to things. I remember traveling to London (England, not Ontario) a lot for work and I would always make a point of going to Old Bond Street to buy myself something from Prada, or Versace, or Gucci. I needed just one thing. While I wanted just one Prada something, I have a friend who would rather have 17 Old Navy other things. As I've gotten older I have found myself needing less and less.
I walk around shopping centers, rarely mind you, because people annoy me and there is always a slow-walking line ahead of me, but I do it sometimes and I marvel at the amount of stuff everywhere. There are shelves filled with things. Racks lined with 5 different colours or versions of the same thing. Why? Why does there need to be so much stuff. Why do we need this? Where does this all come from? I can't fathom how there is a never-ending source of stuff to make all the stuff in all the stores that we think we need. There are no worse words I can hear than "let's go shopping".
I had coffee with my friend Gabriella today and this is exactly what we spoke about. She used to be a nomad, moving from place to place with just a few things and loving it. Not knowing where the next adventure would take her, but always on an adventure. Then she bought a house and settled into it and got some stuff. She sold the house this week and moved out, got rid of as much as she could (surprised at how much there was) and down-sized to a bachelor apartment. She told everyone not to buy her stuff for Christmas. She plans to travel and go on some adventures. While we were talking I was reminded of our empty house in Parkhurst before we left South Africa. And how much I did not miss any of the stuff at all.
I have three pairs of jeans, two smart pants, a bunch of shirts and some shoes. Most of my tee-shirts have holes in them because they rub up against my jeans buttons. I still wear them. I know people that have hundreds of the same thing, things that have never been worn, enough to throw out and not miss it, and they still buy more. The more we buy, the more the shelves and racks get filled so that we can carry on. Is it economics? Does it allow people to keep their jobs? Does it create child labour? Is it all necessary?
Sometimes I sit in front of the TV paying half attention to what's on and surfing the internet. I wonder to myself what I can browse and maybe buy myself something. I can never think of anything I want. Ask Keith and he will tell you that I never want anything. When I do, it's something specific and I take months to actually get it because I know I don't really need it and I hate shopping. It took me 5 years to get an iPad.
Life would be interesting to observe, before all the stuff came along.
The stuff of my life are the people in it, my dogs, and food. It sounds cliched but I know without a doubt that its true.
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