Discardia_ More Life, Less Stuff - Dinah Sanders [92]
Miriam didn't have many things, but everything in her possession had a purpose. Her home was painfully simple—and I hope that she realized her dream of moving into a more solid home with indoor plumbing—but she had put her heart into it and made it clean and cheerful.
She crafted her wallpaper from bright green wrappers from a household product and painted the exterior brightly. She swept the dirt floor scrupulously and a few plants were growing in her yard. After visiting Miriam's house, a girl's orphanage near Nairobi, and a Maasai village, it was very clear to me that it is not the number or newness of possessions that make a happy home.
Compared to most of the rest of the world, we’re rich. I realized how much I'd taken for granted the luxury of a solid, nonleaky house; indoor toilets; a fuel supply and plentiful clean water piped right into the house; a great variety of fresh foods; and clean clothes in good condition. As we begin to appreciate more of what we have, and buy fewer new things and get rid of things we don't need, it makes it easier to afford (or notice that we could already afford) to contribute to other people's quality of life.
Sometimes that bit of money comes from skipping something that we realize isn't really worth it. At other times, it comes from acknowledging that something brings us enough pleasure and is worth an investment for the long term. Once we do the math we may figure out that ad hoc purchases are actually costing us a lot more than we really need to spend. What are your true minimums? Think about where your money goes versus where you want it to be going.
Make that sweet little connection
When the news is dark or you’re facing setbacks, remember the good advice of my friend, spiritual entertainer John Halcyon Styn: “Sometimes you need to turn off the news and focus on the faces in your real life. Sometimes you need to focus on even the smallest of steps that you can make, personally, toward love and compassion.”
The next time you’re feeling disinterested in everything, make some effort to reconnect. Start by connecting to yourself, and the rest of the world will get easier. Clean up your desk or project space, and then spend an hour doing the most creative thing you do there—writing, sewing, drawing, whatever you like. Clear the dining room table and the kitchen counters of stuff that doesn't belong there. Wash the dishes so the sink is ready for action, and then plan a nice meal. Head out to the farmers' market, if you have one in your area today, to shop for ingredients. Take care of your body and get that massage, haircut, manicure, or whatever you’ve been putting off.
There’s no sin in “sincere,” even—perhaps especially—when it’s got a touch of silliness. Go ahead. Start a show on the web and convince enough people around the world to lay pieces of bread on the ground to make an Earth sandwich (like humorist and artist Ze Frank). Make videos that show how every sound in them comes into being (like the band Pomplamoose’s Nataly Dawn Knutsen and Jack Conte). Write songs from the point of view of a giant squid or Pluto’s moon Charon (like musician Jonathan Coulton). Decide that a bar on a Saturday night is the perfect venue for literary readings and launch an absurdly fun series that will last over a decade (like author and commentator Charlie Jane Anders).
Instead of being bored, create something good—a happier home, a healthier you, a creative work of art, a great relationship, a beautiful tool, a positive vision of what your life could be like, or a random act of kindness. Take a step toward better. Just one step. It’s more rewarding, enjoyable, and full of potential than wallowing in a lethargic mental swamp.
Symptom #37: The Edison Museum
Solution #37: Moore’s Law