In the Excess

More often than not, we can get wrapped up in the feel-good feeling of having everything we want and catching that high that comes from it. That's actually what advertisers want us to do.  They want us to get that jolt of dopamine (feel-good chemical) in our brain that tells us "this feels good," "I want more of this," and "I NEED more of this!" But do we really need more?

Now...don't get me wrong - I won't be donating one of the 2 - 9x13 baking dishes that I have...that extra dish isn't excess. I use it and use it most when family is visiting. But what I do have an excess amount of is clothes and shoes...oh yeah, and necklaces and scarves. I know that I have pieces I haven't worn in the last year...maybe even 2 or 3 years. That's the stuff we're talking about.

I want to be free from the possessive grip of things

and find love through value.

Throughout the declutter (purging) process, we constantly want to be asking ourselves - does this bring value to my life? For some, a bookcase full of books brings value to their lives. I actually purged a lot of books that just sat in my house taking up space a couple of years ago. The purging process doesn't look the same for everyone. You might start by only getting rid of one item at a time. Or maybe you take the NOTHING-LEFT-BEHIND approach (said like Braveheart storming the enemy). This journey looks different for everyone.

When I first brought the idea of minimalism to Jason and asked, "what do you think?" I could see he was worried that I had gone off the deep end. But then I found the documentary (as previously mentioned) and within the first 10 minutes I was ready to start filling trash bags to get rid of stuff. I was so profoundly moved by this documentary (that rarely happens for me).

A couple months before I turned 31, I knew I wanted to live this life differently. I no longer wanted to worry about what others thought of my closet. I wanted to be very specific with my gift giving (since Christmas was approaching). I wanted to stop dusting all the junk.

So...where are you in this journey? Are we the first to bring this lifestyle to your attention? Have you had similar thoughts recently? Let us know - we would love to read your feedback!

We know that this is still new for us and we're wading our way through it, but we have a plan and we're going to stick this out.