In this post I would like to address some misconceptions I heard on minimalism... and to be honest, I even had some of those ideas before completely understanding the idea.... so bare with me...
1) Minimalist are cheap
2) Minimalist are happy living poorly
3) Minimalist cannot set their priority straight hence their constant lack of money
4) Minimalist do not want to be part of our society
5) Minimalist are boring
and all this do not necessarily need to be addressed separately.... as they are all related....
First of all we are not cheap and we do not live poorly... Now, not having a house full of stuff, closet full of clothes, pantry full of food, agenda full of social events, busy schedules, long lists of things to do is NOT living poorly... and NOT because we are cheap...
Richness can ALSO be found in simplicity...
I will gladly pay:
6$ for a Chai Latte at Starbucks...
140$ for winter boots made in Quebec where I live...
16$ for a fair trade ethical mug to drink my tea in...
40$ for a t-shirt made of organic cotton in the USA...
5$ for strawberries grown locally and organically in season...
and the list goes on..... do you get the picture?
we do not live poorly... we rather pay more money for stuff we truly care about and have less then have lots of stuff that do not cost much... we go with quality rather than quantity... quality is not cheap or poor...
of course a bedroom like mine with one chest drawer, a double bed, a chair and a nightstand might look empty to some... but I really do not need more than that in my bedroom...
We do not "lack money".... as a matter of fact, we often times have much less debt than the average citizen... and many of us are debt free and do not use credit...
Did you know that 91% of people filing for bankruptcy need to do so because of credit card debt? Living credit card free is possible.... it needs planning but it is possible...
And about priorities.... what would be a straight order of priorities? Having a house, a fancy car, closet full of clothes, travelling a couple of times a year? Who says these are "straight" priorities? Priorities are personal... there is not right or wrong...
however,
the average carbon footprint of Americans is: 27 tons of CO2/year...
the world average carbon footprint per person is: 5.5 tons of CO2/year
the average carbon footprint of a vegan minimalist is 3 tons of CO2/year
there is no right or wrong but there might be some priorities that help the planet we live on a little...
No I do not own a house or a car... this lower my carbon footprint a lot!!!
I do not eat any animal product... decrease even further more...
I do not buy stuff I do not REALLY need...
These decisions, these priorities are the ones that make ME feel good... I take them for myself but also as a participation to this SOCIETY... by using less, there is more for others.... more for generations to come...
It may sound boring to some.... but quite frankly...
I'd rather enjoy a bike ride to the park with my son and husband and sit down on a blanket to have a meal composed of fruits, vegetables, bread and nuts while listening to the sound of kids playing and bird singing than sitting in a fancy restaurant with noise, no sun, no fresh air and not knowing what my meal is composed off...
I'd rather take the bus to run errands and go to work then stress in traffic while driving...
Being minimalist is not cheap, poor, boring... It's a question of priorities... a question of not wanting to use up all mother's hearth has to offer us right now and leave some for future generation... it's a question of not wanting to be stress with to much in too little time... a question of wanting to ENJOY life... instead of undergoing it...
Like Antoine de St-Exupery once said: "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestor but borrow it to our children"
Can we make so that there will be something for them too???
Please do not look at us like weirdos.... or cheapos... or boring people... take the time to get to know a few minimalist before you make up your mind about us...
love and peace,
nath
xox
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"I'd rather enjoy a bike ride to the park with my son and husband and sit down on a blanket to have a meal composed of fruits, vegetables, bread and nuts while listening to the sound of kids playing and bird singing than sitting in a fancy restaurant with noise, no sun, no fresh air and not knowing what my meal is composed off..."
ReplyDeleteYES!!!!! I feel exactly the same way!!