Simple Living Arrangements

Simple Living Arrangements

One of the most peaceful and inspiring things for me to look at is a minimalist home interior. It can be modern or in the Japanese style. It really makes you appreciate the architecture of the place, and the space. It's funny how we try to fill all the empty spaces in our homes. I used to do that a lot because I do love art and aesthetic things, and find beauty even in mundane things. However, when we have so much in our home, it takes attention away from the things. There is too much, and I find it overwhelming to look at. Additionally, no matter how organized we are, with so many items, we are bound to misplace things or loose track of them. I am far from having one of the homes like in the picture below, but I have made a conscious effort to discard things that are broken or cannot be fixed. I used to hold on to knick knacks for creative projects, such as extra buttons because I felt badly to throw them out, and there are not many places to donate them to. However, I found myself with hundreds of buttons, zippers and ribbons. lol. So, I had to make a decision to toss it. I didn't see much impact in my environment from getting rid of these things that didn't take much space, but it got me used to letting go of things that I don't use just, that I kept because I didn't have somewhere to to donate them to. Coincidentally, that is a problem a lot of hoarders have. I am not saying that I am a hoarder, but I do notice that my mom and my dear aunt who raised me tended to be collectors. Perhaps I learned this collecting as well, and some even say that it may be genetic. Grandma on my mom's side loves knick knacks and collecting things too, and mom always talks about not throwing away or wasting things because you may need them and can use them for something else. In any case, since I have this natural habit of keeping little things of late since I started having my own apartment (I didn't do so as a teen or in college), I make a conscious effort to give knick knacks away right away or toss. It is the collecting of a few buttons here or there, a book here or there, etc. that leads to clutter and takes us away from a simpler home. I keep looking at minimalist and zen like home for inspiration to reduce even more.

I gear alot to the philosophy of eastern traditions because it tends to advocate a simple life. I was watching a clip of a monk named Ching Mai, and she spoke about living a simple life. She said that she could ask her followers to build her a house, but she preferred to live in a tent because it is so easy to move around, there is little cleaning needed -which I love , and I want to add, it deters you from accumulating alot of stuff. While the idea sounds intriguing and appealing, I am not about to start living in a tent in the middle of NYC at the moment. However, I would like to be in that mindset, that my home is part of nature, that nature owns it, and I am just a tenant in it, rather than I own it; ultimately, that I am just passing through.

There is an attachment that comes with claiming ownership of things. When we buy things  or pay for things, we do feel that sense of ownership, and since I pay a pretty penny for renting my apartment due to crazy NY rent prices, I have been rationalizing that I just feel more grounded in the apartment. Inside, I always feel like I am just passing through, no matter where I have lived. When I was younger, I thought it was bad to feel like such a nomad because it just wasn’t the norm I see around me, with everyone buying houses beyond their means, and filling their homes with fancy gadgets. It is human to want to preserve certain things that we enjoy, but we sometimes become misguided on what we really need. Swami Sivananda said to have plain living and high thinking. He said to “reduce your wants. If you have four shirts, reduce the number to three or two. Lead a happy, contented life. Think of those who do not possess even one-tenth of what you have. “

I think that seeing our home as something that we enjoy, but doesn’t fully belong to us, but the universe is a good way of keeping in perspective what is really imporatant to us. It does make you feel a little uncomfortable at first because as humans, we seek a sense of security. In our industrialised society, we seek that sense of security in the objects we own, but can also lead to our demise because we can loose touch of what is really important.  I have been thinking of those who have less than I have as Swami Sivananda suggests, not only of those in third world countries, but also of the unfortunate victims of natural disasters, such as Katrina, China, etc. and even those of house fires. Should a situation occur where you were to loose most of your possessions, what few items would you really want to preserve that is invaluable to you? What things will you need to survive for a year?


Thinking about this, I realize that I wouldn’t need half of my clothing. I don’t need most of the scraps of clothing that I hold onto to mend items or alter clothing. As much as I love my library and am am attached to it more than anything I own, there were probably 50 books out of the 125 that I had that I really would want to preserve, so now I have about 50 books, and I still want to reduce it more. I am in the process of trying to obtain digital versions, but some are not available, and some are too costly.

I know it is extreme to just keep the things you would want preserved if there is a fire because we do want to feel comfortable in our homes, but I think just a few items beyond those we want to preserve are needed for comfort.

Also, for those who are renting, remember unless you have renter's insurance, which can be pricey and which I do not have, if something occurs to your building, the landlord is insured for his home, but you are not. Therefore, why store up your home with too much things that you can easily loose. The tragedy in Haiti, and Japan as well as the earthquake in China and Tsunami in Asia and Hurricane Katrina makes me reflect on this even more deeply. I think it is better to share what you have with charities rather than let it sit and collect dust, or serve as a hollow trophy of the accomplishments of your life or image that you want to present to the world. Your thoughts?