I always thought it meant you had to own like
50 things, live in a 12’x12’ home, and travel the world.
My friends (well, we’re not actually friends, but someday we will
be) over at www.theminimalists.com
define it as “A tool to rid
yourself of life’s excess in favor of focusing on what’s important—so you can
find happiness, fulfillment, and freedom.”
To
be honest, I had to read that like ten times before I could wrap my head around
it. The shortened (Mel) version is, “Getting rid of anything that doesn’t add
value or happiness to your life so that you can focus on what really matters.”
Joshua Fields Millburn
& Ryan Nicodemus, the writers of that blog, said the following,
“By incorporating
minimalism into our lives, we’ve finally been able to find lasting
happiness—and that’s what we’re all looking for, isn’t it?
We all want to be
happy.
Minimalists search for
happiness not through things, but through
life itself; thus, it’s up to you to determine what is necessary and what
is superfluous in your life.”
(P.S. they live in
Missoula!)
Aren’t we all seeking
for happiness? Don’t we all have clutter, whether physical or emotional that
gets in the way? Think for a second, what is it that truly makes you happy?
While you think about
what that looks like for you, I’ll share my story (which is still being written
by the way). I woke up one day a few months ago and realized that I wasn’t
happy.
The gospel makes me
happy. My family makes me happy. Serving others makes me happy.
However, I do plenty
of things daily that 1) don’t make me happy, and 2) get in the way of allowing
me to focus on the gospel, my family, and service to others.
Here are some of those
daily things getting in my way:
-Social media
-Shopping (mostly
online)
-Gossiping
-Complaining
-Comparing myself to
others
-Working long hours
and multiple jobs so that I could buy the newest, prettiest, or the latest and
greatest gadget, article of clothing, or accessory
This list could
definitely go on quite a bit longer. To sum it up, I realized that I’m not
spending a lot of time doing the things I enjoy!
And I wasn’t okay with that.
One of my favorite men
who walked the earth, (Gordon B. Hinckley) said, “Life is to be enjoyed, not
just endured.”
Well, you know what,
President Hinckley; I’m not enjoying this. I’m just enduring it. Boom. I said
it! I admitted it! Something had to change!
One day, who knows
exactly when it was, I came across a pin on Pinterest (more social media
distracting me from something better that I could’ve been doing) that said
something along the lines of, “Less is more.”
Um…I’m pretty sure
they made a type-o. We are living in a world that teaches us the opposite.
MORE. We need more. We need to work more, so that we can afford more toys, nicer
clothes, bigger homes, newer iPhones, blah blah blah. Are you tired of reading
the word more?
So anyway, I slowly
started reading blogs, watched a documentary, and then really began pondering
this whole minimalism thing.
Of course, right away
negative thoughts came into my brain. My roommates will judge me. I won’t have
all the latest clothing trends. No one will compliment my clothes anymore if I
become plain and boring all of a sudden. That’s not the Mel I know! I like my
stuff so I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing.
But it’s like this
idea of simplifying life kept
lingering, and lingering, and lingering. And when I realized it wasn’t going
away, I thought, okay. I can do this. I’ll donate a bag of old stuff. I’ll go
find a bag of things that I can live without, and I’ll get rid of it.
And then, maybe I’ll
be a minimalist.
So here’s the thing –
getting rid of stuff and de-cluttering is kind of addictive. And before I knew
it, I had taken five bags of old stuff to the Family Crisis Center, an
organization in Rexburg that helps out local families in need.
Check out this link to
learn more about how/where you can take old clothes instead of just tossing
them: https://www.babble.com/style/12-places-to-donate-clothes/
The key for me was to
stop thinking about it and just start. I had to stop worrying about what people
would say and do what I thought was best!
That’s how it began,
and I will definitely be sharing my experiences along the way, because it’s not
a destination that I’m trying to reach, but a way of life!
What I hope to get out
of this new style of living is more financial freedom, better relationships,
some free time (a foreign concept to me sometimes), time to ponder, time to
serve, time to really study the scriptures and the life of the Savior, not just
a couple minutes in the morning to check off my “Read the scriptures” box. I’m
so over that!
I’m almost done
preaching. I just want to make one thing clear- minimalism will look different
for everyone. There are no rules! You don’t donate 20 bags of old stuff and
then label yourself a minimalist. Some people who choose to live a minimalist
lifestyle are mothers with young children, while others do indeed choose to
live with 50 belongings and travel the world. You can tailor it to what works
for you and how you want to live. But, as you go throughout this week, ponder
the following questions:
“Does this (belonging)
add meaning to my life?”
“If I were to get rid of this, would I miss
it?”
“Are there things in
my life that are distracting me from what matters most?”
