Baby Steps

Before I met my husband, I had an apartment that I was busy filling with things. I had unique furniture that came from random places, and a closet full of clothes. I still thought of myself as a minimalist because I owned a lot less than most of my friends. And I was fine with that.

Then I met Robert. He was an actual minimalist. He owned shirts for work, a couple pairs of jeans, one pair of shoes, a cell phone, one blanket, and enough kitchenware for one person. When our relationship became more serious, we came to a crossroads in our lives. Do we go the way of everyone else, and get an apartment that we fill with stuff? Or do we do my dream?

My dream was to one day own a truck/van/SUV that I would turn into my mobile tiny home. You know, #vanlife and all that. Robert agreed that we should follow my dream. So I got rid of probably 90 percent of my possessions. All my furniture was given away. My clothes were cut down to bare minimum. My books! My beautiful book collection... had to go to Goodwill. It was a bit difficult. But we did it. We bought a truck, made it into a home, and lived in it for almost a year.

I learned a lot along the way. We also have some funny stories. But, in this moment in time, I want to share with you some practical tips in being a minimalist.

1. Remember that you can't take it with you when you die.

We get so damn caught up in our daily lives and routines, that we begin to think that we CANNOT live without some of our favorite possessions. Remember your first cell phone? How you thought it was so cool? Remember how that cell phone is basically obsolete now? You've upgraded, and you liked it. You'll eventually do that with most of your belongings. Everything material is replaceable.

2. Get a book. Read a book. Give a book.

I love reading books. I loved owning them. I loved giving people good book references. It was so difficult to get rid of my books. Do I miss them now? No. So, now when I get a book, I give it away once I've finished reading it. You weren't really going to read it again anyway.

3. Limit your clothes shopping.

I got my number of shirts down from, like, 30 to 10. I don't own multiples of one kind of clothing anymore. Jackets were hard for me. I love jackets. I had multiple styles of jacket. I cut that down to one hoodie, one rain jacket, and one winter coat. My rule for myself is: I buy to replace. Meaning, if I buy a shirt, I have to get rid of one shirt.

4. Do not buy things that only do one thing.

This is pretty straightforward. I mostly use this rule for kitchen appliances. You don't need that random kitchen tool that only does that one thing. It's a scam, trust me.

5. Don't become that girl.

Please understand that I'm not saying that you should live in a van and start posting pictures online that every other white girl posts. I just want to encourage you to find the level of minimalism that challenges you in a healthy way.

I have a lot more life lessons that I learned this past year to share. But, for now, my conclusion is: Don't take life so seriously that you forget to enjoy it. Since we've eliminated some excess junk from our lives, things have been easier. Joy is easier to find. Moments of peace are easier to capture. And I've realized that so much is unneeded.