Things and stuff. We all have things and stuff, sometimes a bit too many. As we look around our work station whether that be at home, a coffee shop, or an office, we see our stuff around us. Our things and stuff make us comfortable in our environment as we have added a piece of us to the area.
In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, we sometimes overlook these items or how about those boxes in the closet, basement or attic? Do we really even remember what is inside of them? Think about when you opened those boxes and thought why on earth did I hold on to this or on the other hand the joy these items bring of the memories they spark. Some things we cannot part with but others we are able to toss faster than a fruit cake.
The Importance of Things and Stuff
Our things and our stuff serve a purpose to us. Our couches, tv’s, beds, photos, phones, computers, our hairdryer, razors, etc, they have meaning to us as we use them but yet if we did not have them we would survive. Sure, sleeping on the floor is not pleasant (memories of camping before of aerobeds) missing our favorite tv shows or a panic attack coming on from being offline for a day or so, but we survive. Things and stuff matter most in the immediate but in the long term when we look back, we tend to forget what it was like having them when we are without. Their importance diminishes as we adapt and acclomate ourselves to going without.
Ridding Ourselves of Things and Stuff
When we rid ourselves of our things and stuff we feel almost lost and powerless. Our sense of control is challenged as we search for new ways to identify to other things and stuff. While this is scalable as losing our phone or Twitter or the internet failing is minor but what happens when we are faced with ridding ourselves of everything that does not fit in our car, truck, SUV? Wow! That is powerful as we look around us and think hmh, the vehicle has a lot of space and so much will fit; until we start packing it all in and realize that there is only a certain amount of real estate alloted. Suddenly these things and stuff do not matter so much. Our sense of control shifts from the feeling of losing to the feeling of gaining.
The Things and Stuff that Matter
The things and stuff that matter are immediate items that are around us that we embrace as they are there and ours. Losing them evokes a feeling of loss as they are always there, the exact same way you left them and until you move them or rid yourself of them. The thought of adapting to something new is difficult as we have owned them. A possession that is a part of us but when faced with “real estate” we suddenly find that we can do without.
The things and stuff are no match to the people and the things they do or what we do for them. There is not a couch, tv, hair dryer (ok, my vanity may come into play on this one) phone or computer that can ever compete with the things and stuff that others do for us or that we do for them. The things and stuff that matter are not always tangible nor immediate as we all know that a Twitter failed whale is critical to the moment but in the scheme of life, the things around us, mostly tangible, (not heirlooms or photos that are not digital) can be replaced with, many times, something better.
Things and stuff that really matter are the people and the interaction as when we have a bad day, the bed is always just there but the things and stuff that people say and do, matters a whole lot more.
So, how much real estate are you willing to give up for the stuff and things?
photo credit: Usonian