Goodbye, Things

While on a run today, I continued listening to an audio book, "Goodbye, Things". As you may know by reading previous blogs of mine, I'm all about non-attachement. I'm not an expert at it, yet I am a work-in-progress. I think about letting go of material things, and I have incorporated the concept into my life with relative success. Yet sometimes, I have to ask myself if something I have is necessary or useful, and analyze the pros and cons of keeping it. Now a days, I am likely to rid myself of it.
Material things have always made me feel good, in the past. I liked having certain clothes, a particular car, that special bookcase or the purse that (I thought) spoke of my "success" in life. But something happened. When I begin to learn to let go - more and more - of my material things, I felt better. Way better than having things. I felt free. I felt clean. And I felt simple.
Having less meant I let go of what other people thought. I am secure knowing that I have what I need.  If my car is not the nicest, or my closet has a minimal set of clothing, I still have what I need. And I find this practice of non-attachment to material things translates into a healthier emotional well-being and a simpler life. Not to mention less to clean and clutter my living space.
Now, I have a long way to go, don't get me wrong. But once I started down this road, I can't even imagine turning off it. It's wonderful! I try not to get too crazy about it though. I wait until something strikes me as "are you sure you really need that?" or "that's been there for a long time". When I step off the curb, why have all this extra stuff? I just want to continue going down the road of saying 'Goodbye' to things as it arises - or if I'm in one-of-those moods to do so. And, I was in one-of-those moods the last few days.
Since the weather lately has been so cold and not conducive to barn cleaning and what-not,  I found these last few days calling my name to take the time to "nest" in the barn. It is my very favorite place to be. Peaceful and calm. I begin by mucking the sheep and chicken coop stalls. I had been making sure they all had plenty of straw during these blistery cold nights, and now it was time to change it out. The best part is, the straw from one place can be used in another place in the pasture. For example, where the donkeys walk up to the barn is mostly dirt. Spreading this "used" straw around that area keeps it dry and a nice place for them to walk and stand. I also changed out all the water buckets with fresh water, filled all the chicken food feeders, fluffed the coop shavings and tossed out all the extra chicken poop I could gather. I will say we maintain it well, but giving it a once-over now and then is refreshing. Even though I get dirty doing it, I somehow feel cleaner. During this process is whereby I cleanse myself of unnecessary things. I don't need this.....I don't need that. Why is that here? It's time to move that. And then Wa-La! The magic of the barn is sparkling, it smells good, and is crisp and uncluttered. It's simple, and it makes me happy. Less is more.
As I write this, I realize that this is really all normal things most people do. My "Goodbye" part comes into play as I'm going through this process of nesting, cleaning, or just being in the mood to do it. I see things differently, and going through these motions have a different intention now. Which brings me to this book I was listening to. The words, "There's happiness in having less." are golden. I am able to understand what that means, finally. Granted, I'm not getting myself down to a mattress and two set of clothes. Yet, the author's minimalist philosophy sounds wildly attractive to me. I can do that, and I could live that life. I actually have, living on the side of the road before. But in real life, day to day, taking my material things down to my personal minimum is a journey I'm happy to be on. Yes, sometimes I have to do it when my husband is gone or away. I typically won't throw out his things or something he may want. But downsizing things when it's just yourself is easier. There's no one to ask and justify to. You just do it. Just so you know, he usually doesn't notice things are missing if I do it a little at a time. Bright side? You can always go buy something if you really did need it after all. But that's not the norm, nor my intention to have to buy something again.
I figured out the important thing is not the measurement of have many or few things I have, but my own state of mind in regards to it. If you have a lot of things are are truly happy, that's totally fine. For me, discarding memorabilia is not the same as discarding memories. Actually discarding these things helps me remember them. I'm all about each of us doing our own thing.
For me, less clutter physically around me means less clutter in my mind. When my environment is clean, I feel clean. So as I moved around the barn yesterday and today, it's a representation of my mind, as well as my physical being. This afternoon, I kept walking back out to the barn, to feel that feeling again. It's been a journey to get there, as our barn started out in a sad state of chaos. Yet now, it's open, airy, and fresh - plus includes just the things that I need, and they are in their place. It's a win-win for my animals and my own mind.
To add to this wonderful non-attachment concept I've adopted, is a term my husband enlightened me on. Right-Sizing. I really like that term. Why have I not heard it? It lends to my saying 'Goodbye' to material things. It helps provide a direction when I may need it. Maybe I will never be a Minimalist, but I can be a Right-Sizer.
I equate this new term Right-Sizing with finding balance in my life. I'll continue to focus on finding balance in the physical things around me using logic, understanding and self-compassion. When I realized that the guilt that keeps me from minimizing is the true waste, it helps put things in perspective. I sometimes write myself a Permission Slip that it's okay to get rid of material things around me, which ultimately brings feelings of purity, contentment and joy. Which all keeps me at the corner of Happy Cyndi and Inner Peace.
So as I lean into the continuation of minimizing my material things, decluttering my mind, and right-sizing my life, I look forward to the fact I can do this. I am healthy, motivated and love life. I am most grateful to be aware that this makes me happy, and has not just physical, but mental advantages. As well as my daughter not having to go through tons of "things" after I step off the curb one day. Your welcome, Lauren.
Here's to putting the 'right' in right-sizing,
Cyndi