Minimalist Project

In additon to these boxes, and a lot of the contents within, I also (finally) let go of my compost bins (I set the worms free!), two giant pieces of plywood, and everything else that was cluttering my side patio.

Clean. Done. Simple. 

The process continues...

It is hard to part with some of these items. They are beautiful and sentimental! But I never use them. So I saved parts of each collection (one wood bowl and one olive dish) rather than the whole set that I never use.

Ten more items out the door!

The unexpected bonus

Every month I embark on a new challenge, there is always an unexpected discovery. I should have guessed this would happen, but being that I love to shop (clearly), I just didn't see it coming. With all this purging (10 items a day!), I have no desire whatsoever to shop or buy anything new this month. We had our charity ball last Saturday and rather than buy a new dress, I just wore a gown from a few years back. Instead of feeling like I was missing out, I felt good making the right minimalist decision. And, I'm saving so much money by not making any new purchases!

Walking gently on this Earth. Ignoring the lure of conspicuous consumption. Living simply 

Ten items from the wine drawer

I'm so thankful I set-up this challenge to be ten items per day. I found ten items (more if you count each item separately) by just going through one small drawer. Letting go, ten items at a time! 

Letting go of sentimental things...

Letting of sentimental things is one of the most difficult parts of this 30 day challenge. I want to hold on to things that remind me of family, friends, trips, and experiences. But I have to remind myself that I carry these memories in my heart and in my digital photos, not in dusty boxes in my closet.

A few blogs that consider this same dilemma:

http://www.theminimalists.com/sentimental/
http://www.becomingminimalist.com/how-to-simplify-your-stuff-and-honor-your-memories/
http://mnmlist.com/how-to-let-go-of-possessions/

160 down, 140 to go

150 items and counting

I am at the halfway point. I've gathered 150 items. Most of them will be donated to Goodwill this week and a few were just tossed or recycled.

The challenge is becoming more difficult. The first 15 days were relatively easy. I made a first pass at my closets and a few cabinets to find things I knew I didn't need. But now I'm taking a second look and it's becoming harder to let go.

I've read a few blogs that talk about owning 100 items - and they mean owning 100 items total. It seems impossible! While I'm not striving for such extreme minimalism, I still admire the simplicity.

What does owning less mean to me?

• Simplicity. 
• Consuming less which is good for the environment and lessens my carbon footprint.
• Consuming less which allows me to save more, and spend more on experiences rather than things. 
• Consuming fewer goods that hurt developing countries and enslave a powerless workforce.

 In my home, it means...

• Living with less clutter.
• Having closets that are organized and simple.
• Simple wardrobe choices - paring down to only things I love and that I feel good in.

I'm still embarrassed that I own this much. I live in small place and it's unbelievable how many things are tucked away in boxes, cabinets and drawers. Wish me luck in the days to come!
 

Ten items lighter

Ten and counting!

Another ten items....gone!

Too many clothes

As I get further into this month, I'm facing the reality that I have way too many clothes. What exactly does that mean? On the surface, it means that I have closets full of clothes that I never wear. The quantity is overwhelming and only adds to the clutter. On a deeper level, I'm embarassed by the waste of spending too much money for things that end up unused and buried in a closet. Imagine what I could have done with that money? A trip? A donation to a noble charity? Life experiences rather than belongings.

This is, sadly, a lifelong habit. But one that I would love to turn around. I don't think I recognized how much this issue has weighed me down. My goal is to truly take a minimalist approach to my clothes.

• Keep significantly fewer clothes.
• Keep only one of any one type and wear it until it's time to replace it.
• Buy only clothes that I absolutely love.
• Buy less often.

The principles are simple, but I've yet to achieve them so far. Perhaps this month will trigger the radical change I need to transform.

By the way, I feel awfully petty even talking about clothes. First World Problems. But it's part of daily life that just needs my attention... then I'll return to contemplating the meaning of life. Ridiculous, I know!

I found this site helpful: http://www.becomingminimalist.com/a-practical-guide-to-owning-fewer-clothes/

Another set of 10 items to sell/donate:

Inspirational closets:



How to get rid of "just in case things"

Excerpt from the Minimalists: 20/20 Theory

"Anything we get rid of that we truly need, we can replace for less than $20, in less than 20 minutes from our current location. Thus far, this theory has held true 100% of the time. Although we’ve rarely had to replace a just in case item (less than five times this year for the two of us combined), we’ve never had to pay more than $20 or go more than 20 minutes out of our way to replace the item. This theory likely works 99% of the time for 99% of all items and 99% of all people. Including you.

More importantly, we haven’t missed the hundreds of just in case items we got rid of, and we didn’t need to replace most of them at all.

Getting rid of these items clears one’s mind, frees up their space, and takes the weight off their shoulders.

What are you holding on to just in case?"

Reminders of simplicity

wrapping dumplings in

bamboo leaves, with one finger

she tidies her hair

(Bash ō 1644 - 1694) 

Why do I have dozens of scarves?

I live in Southern California. This many scarves is a tad ludicrous.

Letting go...

Accepting change and knowing that which I held before, no longer serves me. 

So much stuff!

I've kept so many things thinking I might use or wear them someday. This process is helping me shift away from someday and focus more on today. Simplify, my mantra this month. 

Simplify

A pattering of rain

on the new eaves

brings me awake.

Koji

50 items cleared, 250 to go. 

31 Days to an Uncluttered Home!

This month's challenge (to recycle or donate 10 items every day) will unclutter my closets, but I'm hoping it will also simplify my home and create more detachment to personal belongings. I am inspired by Leo's blog at http://mnmlist.com/ but my minimalism ambitions are not quite as extreme as Leo's.

As with most of my other monthly challenges, there is often an unexpected result that comes into being but only time will tell on this one...

During the first few days, the decison about what to let go of are quite simple, but I know that as the month progresses, I'm going to have to reach a bit further. In preparation, the following principles that I've read over the years may help:

• If I haven't worn it/used it in a year, let it go.
• If it doesn't work, let it go.
• If it is worn, let it go.
• If it isn't beautiful, let it go.
• If I'm saving it "just in case I'll need it someday", let it go. Live in the now.
• Everything I own should have value because I need it or I love it.
• Do not keep gifts I've received out of guilt. Better to let it go and give it a more noble purpose in the world by someone who will use it.
• I'm trying not to buy anything this month, but if I do, I need to let go of something in it's place (above and beyond the 300 items I'm already striving for)

Just like every word in a Haiku is necessary, beautiful, and meaningful, so should all my personal belongings follow that same guideline. And with that, another batch of ten is assembled for departure.



Liberation from clutter

Over the wintry 

forest, winds howl in rage

with no leaves to blow.

- Natsume Soseki 

Dishes be gone

I'm embarrassed to admit I have dishes that are still in their original boxes. 

Wasted space, wasted money, wasted resources.

Simplify.

Live like a Haiku in June

I love poetry, in all its marvelous forms. The haiku is remarkable  - in just 17 syllables, a good haiku can convey beauty, meaning, and transformation. Despite the limiting constraint of just three short lines (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables), poets can express profound meaning. Every word of a haiku is conscious, deliberate, and necessary - and results in a simplistic, beautiful, inspiring expression. 

And so begins my month of transforming my home using the same principles of the haiku. Every belonging is conscious, deliberate, and necessary - and results in a simplistic, beautiful, inspiring expression. 

The idea - Donate or recycle 10 items every single day during the month of June. 

To liberate.  To transform. To simplify. 

Why reflecting on death can bring about meaning and purpose

Excerpt from http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/gunaratna/wheel102.html:

"This contemplation of death is one of the classical meditation-subjects treated in the Visuddhi Magga which states that in order to obtain the fullest results, one should practice this meditation in the correct way, that is, with mindfulness (sati), with a sense of urgency (samvega) and with understanding (ñana).

For example, suppose a young disciple fails to realize keenly that death can come upon him at any moment, and regards it as something that will occur in old age in the distant future; his contemplation of death will be lacking strength and clarity, so much so that it will run on lines which are not conducive to success.

How great and useful is the contemplation of death can be seen from the following beneficial effects enumerated in the Visuddhi Magga: — "The disciple who devotes himself to this contemplation of death is always vigilant, takes no delight in any form of existence, gives up hankering after life, censures evil doing, is free from craving as regards the requisites of life, his perception of impermanence becomes established, he realizes the painful and soulless nature of existence and at the moment of death he is devoid of fear, and remains mindful and self-possessed. Finally, if in this present life he fails to attain to Nibbana, upon the dissolution of the body he is bound for a happy destiny."

Thus it will be seen that mindfulness of death not only purifies and refines the mind but also has the effect of robbing death of its fears and terrors, and helps one at that solemn moment when he is gasping for his last breath, to face that situation with fortitude and calm. He is never unnerved at the thought of death but is always prepared for it. It is such a man that can truly exclaim, "O death, where is thy sting?"

Reflection through Haiku

My life, -
How much more of it remains?
The night is brief.

- Shiki

To seek out new life and new civilizations....

"Someone once told me that time was a predator that stalked us all our lives. But I rather believe that time is a companion who goes with us on the journey and reminds us to cherish every moment because they'll never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we've lived."

~ Captain Jean-Luc Picard

The Portable Atheist

“Death is certain, replacing both the siren-song of Paradise and the dread of Hell. Life on this earth, with all its mystery and beauty and pain, is then to be lived far more intensely: we stumble and get up, we are sad, confident, insecure, feel loneliness and joy and love. There is nothing more; but I want nothing more.” – Christopher Hitchens, The Portable Atheist

I'm ordering this book today... 

I'm also enjoying this quote from Orwell, especially the "humanist attitude"...

“A normal human being does not want the Kingdom of Heaven: he wants life on earth to continue. This is not solely because he is ‘weak,’ ‘sinful’ and anxious for a ‘good time.’ Most people get a fair amount of fun out of their lives, but on balance life is suffering, and only the very young or the very foolish imagine otherwise. Ultimately it is the Christian attitude which is self-interested and hedonistic, since the aim is always to get away from the painful struggle of earthly life and find eternal peace in some kind of Heaven or Nirvana. The humanist attitude is that the struggle must continue and that death is the price of life.” – George Orwell, “Lear, Tolstoy and the Fool”

Seven Pounds

I just watched the last seven minutes of Seven Pounds. I love this film - it's beautiful, original, thought-provoking, and overflowing with love and tears.

Would I live my life differently if someone had died to give me my beating heart?

no death, no fear

A friend recommended "no death, no fear" as part of my Morbid March exploration. I started the book tonight. In the initial pages, the book is already serving as a poignant reminder that our views on death are intrinsically tied to our views on religion. I know this to be true, but this book reminds me how separated I am from those who follow a religion. Yes, naturally our views on death are different. But, more importantly, and more interesting to me, is how will our religious views, or lack of a religious view, define meaning and purpose.

If the examination of death will lead to a better understanding of life, then the results of my investigative journey will be from the viewpoint of an atheist (with compassion and love and appreciation for alternative and religious viewpoints)

I'm peering down the rabbit hole...

Celebration of Life - checklists

I started the process of researching funeral and "celebration of life" checklists. Just as I suspected, it is overwhelming! I can't imagine sorting through all this while grieving - and I know my grieving is dramatic and all-consuming - so I'm glad I'm making an attempt to prepare all of this for me and for my family now, while there is nothing to grieve.

Turns out, there are no easy-to-follow, comprehensive checklists that are quickly found online, so I started building my own. I'm using excel and compiling good questions and recommendations from sites like:

http://www.obituaryguide.com/template.php
http://celebratelives.wordpress.com/checklist-and-instructions-at-my-death/
http://elegantmemorials.com/funeral-service-checklist
and many more...

This is daunting. I'm trying to just focus on the logistics, not the emotional ramifications of loss, at this point.

More work to do, but the process is started. I'll have more details soon, but for now, I'm hoping to create celebrations for me and for my family that are loving, meaningful, and that truly celebrate and capture the essense of our time here on this earth. Easier blogged than done...

Tuesdays with Morrie on a Thursday

Finished Tuesdays with Morrie today. I enjoyed the read. I found Morrie delightful, but Mitch's writing derivitive. How rude of me to critique a writer for attempting such a noble literary work. But I felt like I've read this before and aside from a few noteworthy lines of text, most of the writing quality was ordinary at best.

I loved getting to know Morrie.... some meaningful anaphorisms that I will carry with me...

“So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they're busy doing things they think are important. This is because they're chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”
“Don't cling to things because everything is impermanent.”
"Everyone knows they're going to die,' he said again, 'but nobody believes it. If we did, we would do things differently.”

Thoughts on aging...

I had a wonderful talk tonight with a dear friend of mine. Gigi lights up a room. She has this energy and aura that embraces you. And when she holds your hand or looks you in the eye, you feel connected in a way that is so often lost in the fast-paced, technology-laden communication of today.

She is 83.

We spoke of many things, but two related to aging that I thought were relevant this month. At 83, she knows this for sure:

• She can say no. She can say no gracefully and without guilt. She can say no even if the cause is noble, because time is precious and she can now be selective with her time.
• She has chosen her friends carefully. She knows she doesn't have to spend time with anyone whose energy isn't positive or enriching. She knows who her true friends are and she relishes her time with them.
• Friendships, true and genuine friendships, are to be nurtured and treasured.

After our conversation, I also know this for sure... there is love. Love in friendship. Love in family. And there is a love in soul mates. As Gigi said, "he" is out there. He is born. And we will find each other.

The last tidbit isn't related to my monthly theme.... but perhaps it is. Perhaps in examining the meaning of death, I should remember that love has to be part of the answer.

Thank you, dear Gigi.