If I’m
being completely honest with you, I would rather watch Netflix in my free time
than do other productive activities. But, can ya blame a gal? Lately I’ve
been on a documentary kick, some very informative, others… not so much. The
other day, I stumbled across a short documentary titled Tiny. The
documentary follows a young, average couple and their journey in building
a mobile "tiny" house measuring less than 200 square feet. (A whole house smaller than my college dorm room...wha?) I
was definitely intrigued, so I spent the next hour completely inspired by
how this couple and others interviewed devote their life to live simply
and what their notion of home is.
I'm not
going to summarize the whole film, but you can check out the trailer or Netflix. This documentary really energized me
in sense of evaluating what is important in life. Living in such a
materialistic world, it is hard to say, "things don't fulfill me."
Society has trained us to find joy in "stuff," whether it be cars, houses, electronics, boats, clothes...etc. The people in the
documentary believe living in small quarters demands them to reduce their
belongings down to the bare minimum, allowing more time for things
like relationships, faith and hobbies. Kinda like little house on the prairie
days, ya know? It's nice to take advantage of all the cool things we have in
this world, but you can't let material things overrule you or let them be
the only things that bring joy to your life. Have you ever taken note of how
distracting all of your "things" are? Tiny houses allow a
great platform for people to focus on each moment, clear
from culture's interruptions.
Now you
may be asking yourself, "is this girl tying to persuade me to build a
small house and make a life out of it?" HECK NAH! If you'd ask my mom, I'm
probably the last person you should be taking advice from in regards to the simplifying topic. I like things. I hate to admit that I have (organized)
clutter. I tip my hat off to the people who don't let "things"
consume them. However, these past few weeks I have been taking inventory of all
my stuff (especially clothes) and trying to cut it in half. Some of you may
know I will be studying abroad in Sweden this fall and for about five months, I
will be living off one suitcase. Crazy right? I haven't really fathomed
the reality of leaving the comforts of home and throwing myself into the
unfamiliarity of a new culture, but I'm SO excited! Anyways, simplifying my belongings is a must, especially for where I'm at in life right now.
Here are
a few tips/tricks that I've embodied when it comes to "living
small"
1. Take
inventory of your stuff and do it often. You guys, I found shirts in my closet
that I wore in sixth grade...WHY???? Managing your belongings is so much easier
if you don't let all your s*** pile up for years on end. This leads me to
my next point...
2.
"If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be
beautiful." -William Morris
Could
this quote be any truer? Get rid of everything that doesn't
represent you and you know what you could make some $$$ while doing so.
3. Learn
how to use eBay. You know what they say, ones man's trash is another man's treasure.
4. If
you are not good with technology but still want to make money while
simplifying, bring your stuff to a local pawn shop or craigslist it or
maybe even host a garage sale!
5. Do
you really need the same shirt in five different colors? Probably not. Quality not quantity.
6.
Collect moments, not things!
7. Make a
list of the essentials in your life and focus on them.
I'm not
an expert in this field at all, but I'm striving for a simpler life
with less materialistic belongings. Don't fall in the trap to consume
the unnecessary, people! What doors will open when you consume less?
Thanks for reading along.
xo Hanna
