It's Just Stuff

Recently my family and I relocated. That means we loaded up not one but two U-Haul trailers and moved from on location to another in our home state. As we were loading the last load onto the second U-Haul, it dawned on me that all of our earthly possessions would fit nicely into no more than 40 feet of truck space. Some of the stuff we moved will be left in boxes until we store it or God forbid have to move it yet again. It is really amazing how much stuff you can accumulate over a period of time, and how little stuff you really need just to live. I once heard someone say that in our world today people are renting storage units to store their old stuff so that they can replace it with new stuff, and that cycle continues indefinitely.

The greatest benefit of moving from time to time is the purging that always accompanies a move. It is so freeing to take a load of stuff to the curb, fully assured that the city will come along and haul your stuff to the landfill, or someone will drive by and spot something they can not live without. Just for fun, I like to put stuff at the road and see how quickly it gets carried away by someone who needs it far more than I do.

Just the other day I spent some time rummaging through my stepfather's many rooms filled with stuff that has been accumulating for the last several years. I thought as we looked for that one thing that I needed how difficult it will be some day to have to decide what goes and what stays. Most of us will be long gone before that decision is ever made.

In reality this journey that we are on requires very little stuff. A few dishes, a bed and just enough clothing to get you through the year. There is really something to this idea of simplicity. The principle is ageless. It is the difference between what we need and then what we want. Simplicity requires us to focus on the needs, whereas other stimuli draws our attention to what we want. So remember, as you gather what you need for the journey learn to differentiate between what you need from what you want, and consider those who will one day sort through it for the last time. And more importantly, remember it is just stuff.