Have you ever dreamt that you lived in a tiny house? OK, maybe it’s just me. I have this recurring image in my mind of a small (like 200 square feet) mud home lit by a small glassless window with a curtain drawn across it. There are very few items in the home: an oil lamp, wooden bowls, a low wooden table, and a rolled-up mattress.
I could live in a house like that. It’s not that it is poor or that I dislike wealth or fine things; what appeals to me is the emptiness, the simplicity.
When my living space has too many things in it, my life feels cluttered. Each thing requires some portion of my attention and time. Really, the clutter irritates me, so I either ignore it, organize it, or eliminate it – all of which require time, effort, and concentration. As a result, my desire to accumulate posessions has been slowly decreasing.
Isn’t it crazy to think that, even with the recession, Americans are among the richest people on this planet? How does the gluttony of consumption affect our happiness?
My brother Chandler basically got rid of nearly everything he owned. Perhaps I will do the same myself.
Please share any thoughts or comments in the comments below.
You are describing a monks cell.
If you actually lived in the place you describe, I wonder how long it would take before you longed for more visual variety in your space.
Mandala to the rescue.
ibeneon
Zen all the way. I couln’t agree more. Too much stuff distracts from the here and now, and especially the future
i support you.
i, however, would rather die than live without all my stuff.
Josh, I agree with your comment. I didn’t mention it in the post, but the crux of the issue is that when we aren’t distracted on things, we can excel at doing and at experiencing life.
I’ve always imagined a place with white or off-white walls. Not cold metallic but earthy if that’s possible for white. But it would also be decked out with technology up the wazoo (electronic technology). I like roomy places. I think everyone does. That’s why when Kings build they build for size. You never have any build small kings.
I’ve also imagined small, simple spaces. Less Zen, more pragmatic/Ralph Waldo/wise-man-on-the-hill/Buddhist-style-at-one-ness.
or even Simpleness…but because you understand so much and not from your looking down on something or from a negative-reinforcement discipline…..