Our family of four has one tiny cupboard for dishes. We have four bowls and four plates that we use as our main dishes. We have some storage containers and three glass mixing bowls of different sizes that come in handy. We have a few cups, but we mostly just use our water bottles all of the time. Doing dishes is easy because we have so few things to wash. We can't make a mess on top of a mess because we don't even own duplicates of anything. It is so simple, basic and easy.
We don't waste food. We are limited by our small fridge and our pantry size. We buy exactly what we will eat and then when it is gone we shop again. We don't throw away food like we used to - we don't lose things in the back of the fridge. Our space is precious and we can't use it to store things we are not going to eat. We make salads and canned soup and things on the grill. I make crockpot meals. It is easy and simple. We eat vegetables, fruits and greens every day. It is a healthy way of living and I feel good about using up the food we buy.
The kids play with their toys. They don't have many. Brother likes Legos and Sister likes dinosaurs and dragons. When their screen time is done, they play with their toys. They don't have too many to overwhelm them. It is easy to put them away because they each have one bin which holds all of their toys. I don't have to stress about toys everywhere - I remember what a disaster the toy situation was in our big house. Toys are valued here, the ones that are not played with are donated. It's a good system.
When your space is free of all the clutter so is your mind. Whatever the future holds I know that I will always value a simple life and a small house. It's the most liberating feeling to be free of all that stuff.
Speaking of liberation: Since we have been back from our summer adventure we have been clearing out our 5x5 storage space. We had three boxes left of our leather bound book collection and Husband has been selling them on ebay. We sold most of the books in lots by collection, but these are the few that didn't fit into any collection or were unique in some way. In a couple weeks he has already collected $1000 for some of these items. Overall it seems we recouped about 2/3rd of the cost of all those books - with many collections you're lucky to get back 1/3 of the value, so we are very happy about that. We've put about $12,000 into savings from the sale of all the books. It's been a royal pain selling them and it had taken a lot of time, but we are finally down to the last box. This experience has been a lesson in the truth that it is much easier to acquire things than to get rid of them.
Finally, speaking of savings - I love having savings. With no debt and low expenses, even with our summer trip, we have been able to grow our savings significantly over the past year. Of course selling things has helped increase the savings, but there is a portion of my paycheck that has been going to savings for over a year and we have not had to use it. In a country where 40% of our fellow Americans can't afford a $400 emergency without selling something or borrowing money it is a good feeling to have cash in the bank. Currently we have the bulk of our savings in CDs bought at different times and with different maturity dates. This investment strategy works for us and is also simple. There is little stress, it is straightforward, has a guaranteed return, and allows us the option to change our strategy at regular intervals. Watching the savings grow is joyful and allows us the freedom to consider various options for the future. Most significantly we have freedom - we own ourselves and our things without any obligations to a bank or a lender.
There are so many benefits of living with less. I partially attribute my improve health to the reduced stress and the increased sense of control I feel. I no longer binge drink or eat - I am not even tempted. Choosing to live simply includes making good choices for yourself and your family. There is an added sense of mindfulness and peace associated with it. There is also an increased sense of thankfulness for what we have - especially each other and our health - perhaps that is the best aspect of living with less.
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| "...I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference." -Robert Frost |
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