Minimalism-Game Update: The Not-Stuff Stuff

So, I am 18 days in! The Game has been challenging. You may have noticed that I am often a day or two behind on Instagram. In truth, it’s because the Game can be a bit of a chore. At first, it was unnatural to find just one or two items to let go of when emptying out a junk drawer/shelf. Now, it is time consuming to sift through review books on dusty shelves or papers placed under the bed and try to determine why these items were not donated or recycled in the first place. However, for a small apartment that I would have previously described as tidy, I am amazed by how much stuff I have uncovered. Time-consuming or not, it is still easy to uncover another dozen items.  So, here are my five reasons I am still playing, and why you might consider playing, too.

1.  Rediscovery: Stuff piles up.  Literally, it piles into small to large piles under my bed, in cabinets, in closets. And stuff in piles is usually not being put to its optimal use. So, while a lot of this game is getting rid of stuff, there has been some rediscovery of cherished items, too. (e.g. I thought I lost my copy of Paradise in Plain Sight because it was not in plain sight!)

2. De-Clutter Duty:  I feel different when I walk into my apartment and it is clean. Specifically, I feel ready to do what I planned on doing before I opened the door. If it isn’t clean, I feel suddenly weighed down by an unexpected task. I can close the closet door or drawer that is full of unneeded stuff, but the clutter is still there.  And since Kev and I have very finite space (500 square feet to be exact), someone needs to be on de-clutter duty before we are swimming around in dried up markers, holes with socks (the order is intentional), and old papers.

3. Giving: Not everything I am uncovering is trash. Prior to this activity (unfortunately, or this would be a little easier), I did an overhaul of my closet. That said, I do not donate items that are un-wearable. I give away items that I am not putting to use anymore. Playing this game is an opportunity to give items away so that someone else may find more value or use in them.

4. Saving: The daily process of evaluating what I have, what I want, and what I need does translate into spending with more intention. This is a big plus when living loan disbursement to loan disbursement as a medical student, but also a practice I want to keep developing beyond graduation. Independent of wealth, why consume much more than needed?

5. The Not-Stuff Stuff: Yes cheesy, but this game forces me to look at my life in a stuff and not-stuff stuff kind of way. My family, friends, a stocked (quasi) and functional (mostly) kitchen, a comfortable couch and cozy bed, even my plants! This exercise prompts a rapid and totally subconscious (really until writing this I did not think of this) assessment of what stuff, big and small, I am so fortunate to have and immediately lands in the not-stuff stuff category.

So, for those reasons, I will continue. And feel free to join or continue to follow along on Instagram.

- Ari Gushue