Confessions of a Minimalist
The reason is I get caught up in an obsession, and then I let myself give in to impulses.
For example:
I started collecting vintage toys last year. G.I. Joe action figures to be exact. I planned to get back all of the Joes my brothers and I lost as we grew older. Now, the Joes are inside boxes because I need to buy stuff where to display them.
I also started collecting NBA cards two years ago. All of them are in boxes as well as I've lost interest in selling or trading them. The hassle of having to ship them to buyers, the headache I get for difficult buyers, just wasn't worth my time.
I got obsessed with knives a few years back, and ended up having bought a lot of them. Now, I have a collection just sitting inside boxes as there was no way to use all of them everyday.
I’ve bought too much coffee and tea equipment that I don’t use very often.
I buy sports and exercise equipment that I barely use.
I have more clothes now than I did a few years ago. Not sure why.
None of this is very minimalist, and I don’t have any justification for any of it. Much of it is still cluttering up my closet or attic and I can’t bear to get rid of it all because a) it was expensive and b) I still have hopes of using a lot of it. I confess, those are not good reasons to keep a bunch of stuff I don’t use.
Why did I give in to these urges? Mostly because I was hopeful of having a life that used them. I had fantasies, I think, of having a huge G.I. Joe toy room, of being a rich and famous NBA card collector, of going out in nature camping using bush knives, of exercising everyday, etc. etc. And I got attached to those fantasies and then felt I needed to buy the things to support that lifestyle. I don’t need those fantasies. I don’t need to become anything other than I am.
I don’t need the equipment to be active, enjoy the outdoors, enjoy remembering my childhood, play with my kids. I can get by with less.
I don’t need to hoard all of that stuff. I can keep a few things, sell the rest.
At 43, I am still learning.
None of this is very minimalist, and I don’t have any justification for any of it. Much of it is still cluttering up my closet or attic and I can’t bear to get rid of it all because a) it was expensive and b) I still have hopes of using a lot of it. I confess, those are not good reasons to keep a bunch of stuff I don’t use.
Why did I give in to these urges? Mostly because I was hopeful of having a life that used them. I had fantasies, I think, of having a huge G.I. Joe toy room, of being a rich and famous NBA card collector, of going out in nature camping using bush knives, of exercising everyday, etc. etc. And I got attached to those fantasies and then felt I needed to buy the things to support that lifestyle. I don’t need those fantasies. I don’t need to become anything other than I am.
I don’t need the equipment to be active, enjoy the outdoors, enjoy remembering my childhood, play with my kids. I can get by with less.
I don’t need to hoard all of that stuff. I can keep a few things, sell the rest.
At 43, I am still learning.
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