Living with Less

I recently read an interesting New York Times article about living with less.  “I live in a 420-square-foot studio,” stated Graham Hill, the author of this article.  “I sleep in a bed that folds down from the wall.  I have six dress shirts.  I have 10 shallow bowls that I use for salads and main dishes.  When people come over for dinner, I pull out my extendable dining room table.  I don’t have a single CD or DVD and I have 10 percent of the books I once did.”

Hill’s happiness grew once he got rid of unnecessary stuff — and the stressors that came with it.  I know with our recent move, we gave away items; shredded many papers; and threw away a ton of “stuff ” that we no longer needed, that accumulated in a relatively short period of time.  It felt really good to clear out the unnecessary, especially because we did not want to move unnecessary items!   Sometimes having less is actually having more.  Getting rid of things is such a cleansing feeling.  Do you agree?

The above illustration by Maxwell Holyoke-Hirsch.