ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Learning To Live With Less

Updated on October 11, 2013

Living A Simpler Life

Exploring what one really needs to survive and grow. Our lives get so complicated as we age. We accumulate so much stuff, material stuff and mental stuff can drag us down and keep us from moving forward.

My life has left me with a lot of emotional baggage. I need to clean out the trash in my mind and heart to start over fresh. This is a struggle for me as I tend to cling to the guilt rather than forgiving myself.

As far as material stuff, I don't have that struggle. Every time that I have started over I seem to leave with just the clothes on my back. I have had my belongings stolen, kept and trashed out of spite, put into storage and lost. The hardest thing is loosing family items and missing a home to call my own.

I so want to live a simpler life. I don't need much space anymore. I want to be independent but not isolated. I want healthy relationships with family and friends. I want to give more than I receive.

I guess, I just want to be me.

Living Large by Living Small - Under Constuction

Sketch by Kristin Noelle
Sketch by Kristin Noelle

Here is my Dream Home.

I love the idea of less space indoors and more space outdoors.

A small place for shelter and the comforts of a home to renew my body but more space outdoors to garden, kick up my heels, enjoy nature to renew my spirit is my dream.

It's just a dream now but I can already see it in my mind. I can see the wild flowers. I can hear the hummingbird's wings as they dart from flower to flower. I can feel the warmth of the sun on my shoulders and the soft breeze in my face. I can smell the afternoon rain on it's way. I can even taste the fresh grown vegetables picked from my small garden.

What Do We Really Need To Live?

Learning The Difference Between Need and Want

Exploring and Researching:

What do we need and how much of it? What is a need? What is a want? Then ask yourself why or the purpose of having the item.

Do I need a TV in every room? Of course not.

Do I want a TV in every room? No, not really.

What would be the purpose of having a TV in every room? There is no logical purpose. In fact, I waste too much time on TV now.

The above example thumped me in the head and made me realize I don't need a TV at all. The shows that I enjoy are usually on Discovery or National Geographic channel. I can find them on line.

Do I need so many purses? Of course not.

Do I want so many purses? No, not really.

What is the purpose of having a purse? To carry lots of stuff with you, I guess. Wouldn't a wallet in my pocket be more practical and safe to hold essentials in like my ID, Debit Card ( I don't use credit cards) cash etc? Why yes it would.

A re-purposed cabinet door that I painted like an old sign.. It's for sale.
A re-purposed cabinet door that I painted like an old sign.. It's for sale.

How To Scale Down?

Sell, Donate, Give, Recycle, Trash

I've been selling some things on E-Bay.

I went to flea market today and sold a few things. I had fun, enjoyed the sun and met some interesting people. I even gave some things away as my heart led me to do. I hope to go again.

I have some nice things to donate to Habitat ReStore. How about that TV? I have some nice things for Salvation Army too. How about some clothes I don't wear and of course a purse or two?

I have some wooden items that I can paint and re-purpose into useful gifts or even sell.

Oh yes, there is trash but it too can be recycled into appropriate bins.

Recycle Reuse Repurpose

Using What You Have Available

Another person's trash can be a treasure.

This is an old bucket used as a light. Pretty cool for the kitchen.

http://www.squidoo.com/re-using-the-unusual-to-cre...

Donate Donate Donate

It is very rewarding to donate good used item. There are so many agencies that would welcome your useful household items.

This is a much better option than filling your over crowded land fill.

Some that quickly come to my mind:

Habitat For Humanity

Salvation Army

Good Will

Homeless Shelters

Your Church Family

Check your local phone book for more and remember they will often pick up large items..

Cleaning Out Old Thoughts and Habits

Negative Baggage
Negative Baggage

Since I have been learning to live with less. I thought of all the extra junk I have stashed in my mind. So I have started to clear out the negative thoughts in the attic (my mind) that keep me from moving forward in my life.

During this process, I realized my body needed some cleansing too. I needed to get rid of some bad habits and replace them with good ones.

I visualize bins and old suitcases to pack my negative thoughts, regrets etc. into and get rid of them.

What To Do With The Mental Baggage?

Try sorting out some of the stuff that is bothering you. Imagine a few suitcases in front of you, now let's put a baggage tag on each one of them. One of mine would be labeled Past Mistakes. Another is labeled Guilt. Maybe, I'll tackle these first. It's always easier to approach a big job in small steps.

Now that I have filled these two suitcases, what to do with them, I ask? I tried burying them once but they kept surfacing. I no longer need to hang on to this baggage and I sure wouldn't want to donate it to anyone else. I think it is time to symbolically burn it and not let the smoke get in my eyes.

Now let's find a good past special memory and make a new great memory to celebrate. Today celebrate, tomorrow we can tackle another suitcase..

I have been busy at work packing another suitcase that I have labeled Fears. Fear has crippled me in so many ways. It has kept me from experiencing real love. I have built walls around me and made excuses for my behavior. I will be glad to get rid of this baggage. In it's place love will grow. Fear and love cannot exist in the same place

"There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life."

John Lennon

Living Out of A Suitcase

Just One

What would you pack if you could only carry one suitcase for the rest of your life? What do I need to pack to be best prepared for this unknown journey? What would I wish I had packed but didn't?

What to Pack ( 1st draft)

1. Comfortable shoes for walking.

2. A change of clothes.

3. Personal hygiene items.

4. Blanket or throw

5. My Bible

6. Identification

7. Glasses

8. Ball Cap for bad hair day.

9. Notebook and pen

10. Medicine

11. Flashlight

12. Address Book

13. Contact for Emergency Number

14. Stamps

15. Hope for Future

What I would wish for:

1. Money

2. Cell Phone

3. Laptop

Reaching Out For Resources

Where and how to find resources for essential living?

For the past 2 months I have been seeking help in order to put a roof over my head and I will share the results with you as soon as I have results. So far my name has only put on waiting lists.

I have also been seeking resources for mental health and group therapy to combat my depression and anxiety. I don't have insurance or the $$$ to spend on receiving professional help. Truth is, it was a big step for me to admit that I couldn't fix myself on my own. Hopefully, I will share the results with you. Again, my name has been put on waiting lists. I was told by one of those resources that the waiting list is at least 1 year maybe 2 before I would be helped.

United Way has many resources.

Salvation Army

Goodwill

Good Samaritan

Crisis Hotlines

Group Support

Volunteer

When you give you receive.

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)