Learning to Live With Less

Moving Day. Image: Public Domain

I seem to accumulate “stuff”. All kinds of stuff. Possessions, paper products (yay Costco), books, food in the pantry, files on my computer, pounds on my waistline. Not because I’m a compulsive hoarder. I just like to be prepared. “Just in case.”

I’ve put my finger on one of the reasons why it’s been so easy to accumulate, and then to accumulate more. Space. If there is room in my house or room in the pantry or room on my hard drive, I keep things. Or I get more than I need for now, so we don’t have to get it or find it later.

We’re moving down the street in a couple of weeks to a place that’s 3/4 the square footage of this place, but still sufficient room for a family of four. There is no pantry. No coat closet. Fewer closets in general (that will be the biggest issue). Fewer kitchen cabinets. A strange, 2/3rd-size dishwasher. So we’re purging, eating up food, and figuring out how to do with less. Changing our mindset in advance. Or trying to.

I really think it will be a positive experience, though, rather than one where we feel like we’re missing out. I mean, how many spare rolls of paper towels does one need at any given time? In the future, we’ll probably spend more at the grocery store and less at Costco. We’ll likely have to shop more often. We will find the best way to use our new Amazon Prime membership. But I’m already feeling a bit liberated by the idea of having less “stuff” around me. And it might even help with my waistline.