Rereading my previous post...

I just read my previous post and realized among other things, I had written "there here". I meant "they're here!" I didn't get the chance to edit that post. I had to run some errands and thought I had just saved the post to come back and actually post later after I finished it. But when I came back to it, I realized that it had already been posted.

So the post wasn't actually finished. I had planned some existential babble about the extremes of having and not having stuff. How it is easier for me to think of just letting it all go verses having to decide what to give up and what to keep. Because somehow the act of deciding on one thing are another is to difficult a task, so I would prefer to just walk away and leave it all...as opposed to deciding what is more important and what is less important in the whole scope of my life.

Of course, I am strictly talking about things, not people. Because we all understand that it is the people in our lives that are important and not the things...right, we all understand that don't we?

Anyway, back to the things in our lives. I do understand that in our normal way of thinking, there are some things that we require in order to live our "normal" lives. But even our ideas of what is normal and what isn't can get really messed up when we start to look at the lives of people around the globe. Even when we start to examine the lives of many who live right here in our country, in our cities and towns. Of course, if we were choosing a life, we probably wouldn't choose the way of life that many live. But probably many of them don't "choose" that way of life, but it is somehow forced upon them. By them, I am referring to the homeless or the very poor in underdeveloped countries that live in conditions that are deplorable. The things they manage to live without makes me rethink what is truly "necessary" for a happy life.

Many times I have discussed with my girls about "wants" versus "need" and in our society it is quite difficult sometimes to understand the truth of what is "want" and what is "need". So with all of this said, whatever I can think of that is on my "need" list, I can think of a situation and life circumstance where that so called need could be considered a want. So when it comes down to basics; food, shelter, and some sort of clothing become the basic of needs on my list. But I am thankful that I have beyond that-more than enough, more than my basic needs. So much more that it requires a large tractor trailer to move them from one location to another.

Maybe we don't really have this "need/wants" thing figured out yet. Maybe it is that "little gypsy" in me, you know the one that thinks living in a yurt would be so awesome; that is struggling with this whole idea. Maybe I just feel a little bound by all these things. Maybe I still think that picking up and moving to a new place, a new life, should require a little less planning and coordinating with packers/movers, and van lines. The whole idea of spontaneity is completely lost because of all of this around me, packed away in all these boxes.

It is becoming a love/hate relationship I have with my things. On the one hand I can't rid myself of them without suffering this mental anguish and emotional ripping away of something that I feel should be held on to,,,for what, I haven't quite figured out...For memory sake? For future use? For??? What? What need do I have of it all? On the other hand, to much stuff becomes a heavy burden to carry. You have to house, tend and see to all of it. It is time consuming and expensive. And for the most part, much of it stays hidden in closets, cabinets, drawers, storage sheds; unused and mostly forgotten...

Yes, your getting a little of the existential babble...

You come into this world with nothing, you leave with nothing...but in between your burdened down by...stuff.

I know that most "normal" people can't understand what this is even all about. You have a house, you have stuff...you know furniture, clothes, books, junk that belongs in the junk drawers. After years of living you manage to accumulate lots of this stuff. Maybe some people shed their stuff on a regular basis, so it doesn't get to much. But I am sure that most of us do have lots of stuff...Which reminds me of a podcast that I heard a couple of years ago about a guy who was trying to get down to where he only had 500 things. He did an inventory of what he had and whittled his things down toward the goal of 500 things.
You can listen to it by clicking on the links above.

As I sit here tonight looking around at these boxes, that it took two men all day to pack; and they aren't done I might add; I wonder if they drive off with it all on Tuesday like they plan to do, and if they never showed up at our house on the other end of this trip. Say it was like the airlines with luggage, and it ended up in another location, never to be seen again, would it REALLY matter? Could I start over from scratch and if I were to do that, would I be more discriminating in my decisions of what I brought into my life, and what I left on the shelves of the store? I truly believe that I would be very selective in what I chose to "collect." I would really think about what I bought, no impulse buying for this gal. Just the basics, just what I loved, just what spoke to me. Minimalism?? Hummm....maybe it shouldn't be just a movement in art, architecture and music history...maybe it could work in our daily lives...

Maybe my new mantra should be:

"More experiences, less stuff, More memories, less memorabilia!"

Okay, it is getting late, I am tired, and my mind is doing that thing again...time to put the leash back on it and reign it in for the evening. I am obviously to tired to be writing a lengthy post that goes on and on about something...Oh yes, that is what most of my post do, uuuhummm...anyway, I need to end this here and now with a couple of silly shots of Noah.