In the Grand Scheme of Things

Maybe it's been the discouraging amount of summer clothes that spewed out of my closet and nearly buried me, or the family budget screaming at me for overspending but I've had a persistent desire to purge, to simplify, to cleanse, to do less, to buy less... The web of course is obese with tips on how to simplify life, but in the spirit of simplicity, I've chosen 3 choice places to read, Zen Habits, The Story of Stuff and mnmlist. (see below)

Blogger, writer and more, Leo Babauta, writes on his blog Zen Habits, a short and long list of what to do to lead a simple life. The short, simple list is this:

1. Identify what is most important to you

2. Eliminate everything else.

The Long List is long, 72 tips long, but basic. I've chosen one tip randomly on the list for today: Tip number 63: Carry less stuff. Um...

Maybe it's that ol' girl scout saying: "Be prepared" that is still drilled in my head, but on most days, my diaper bag is more like a mini earthquake kit; able to keep my kid and I self-sufficient for 72 hours. As I was dumping out it's content, on top of the regular diapers, wipes, wallet and keys, I realized that I've been hauling a tube of sunscreen, sunglasses and a sun hat for the last 30 rainy days, enough tampons for 2 months, 3 rolls of 5 cent coins I've been meaning to take to the bank, a side pocket full of crusty kleenex and a camera. I won't even start on what was in my wallet. 

A major trim down of the diaper bag took two lickety splits of a second, but now the trick is to keep things out of it. We all have something, admit it: books, ceramic figurines, the latest Iphone, toys, clothes, DVDs, beer glasses, shoes, it can be anything really.... and in the grand scheme of things, (no pun intended) is it really important for us to have more?

If this seems like a lot to remember and too difficult to do, watch this short movie on The Story of Stuff to see why we really have no choice but to simplify and consume less. Then read the simple and infrequent blog entries on Leo's other blog mnmlist to get used to letting things go.