Having just celebrated a holiday that is largely based on materialism, my husband and I have been thinking a lot lately about the "things" that we have and need. It turns out that we have a lot and don't need as much as we have. I have been on a simplification track for the past year. Part of it started with having a baby and I didn't want to get caught up in the new parent trap of thinking that our child needs a new gizmo for everything she does. The other part of it is become I became a stay at home mom, and so we have less money to buy the things we thought we needed before (or just plain wanted).
With the New Year approaching, people tend to go through their possessions, getting rid of the old things to make room for the new. My bet is that most people have a lot of "old things" to get rid of that probably don't need replaced with brand new ones. I go on a "stuff purge" every couple of months, clearing out things that we haven't used for a while. The common thinking is that if you haven't used it in a year, you most likey aren't going to and so should get rid of it. We took three bags to Goodwill yesterday and will have more stuff after we clean out the attic this weekend. (my husband's idea - amazing!) Keep in mind the ways to discard of your stuff without throwing it in the trash. This post lists some of your options.
I'll be talking more this year about our decision to live a simpler, less materialistic life and the ways that we are trying to do that. Of course, it is much easier said than done, but we have found that once you get started down that path, it is easier to keep moving in that direction. I have been drawing inspiration from the bloggers out there who strive to live more frugal, simple, less materialistic lives, but that are full in love, family, creativity, and fun. Having less "stuff" doesn't mean having less fun.
I'll leave you with some images from the ongoing conflict in Sudan. Most of these people are carrying all that they own. That is a quick sentence to read, so pause a moment to actually think about it. I'm not asking you to "live like a refugee" (to quote the Tom Petty song, though I don't know what context he uses it in). I am simply posing the thought that maybe what you want isn't what you really need and what you really need to live a fulfiling life is less than what you think.