Living In A Material World

What gives you the greatest joy in life? What creates a lasting memory? When you think about these questions, do material possessions come to mind?

I've just gone through one of the most logistically challenging moves of my life. I moved boxes of photos and miscellaneous things I haven't looked at or thought about in years, clothing I've never worn, and furniture that's managed to tag along with me because it's been deemed "useful". From a large one-bedroom apartment, the stuff just kept emerging, endlessly, it seemed. More than ever before, this most recent move got me thinking about the perceived value of material possessions.

What does it ultimately cost to maintain our things, year after year? What is the toll monetarily, emotionally, even spiritually? What do these possessions provide us with?

• Survival? Some do, for sure, or at least modern comforts and practical conveniences. But what about the other stuff?
• Does it offer a sense of joy? How and why?
• Are they tools for expressing your passion? Have you identified what you're passionate about?
• Do you keep things as nostalgic reminders of somebody or some other time?

Ask yourself those questions. Begin to think about the things you've allowed to tag along with you. Are they empowering your life, or are they becoming burdens? Can you look around and see 3 things that you could donate to someone who may need it more than you or get more use or joy from it? I'm not saying to denounce all possessions. I'm simply saying it could be time to look at habits of carrying things along.

Personally, the more I contemplate this, the more I realize that the real joy I experience in life is in connecting with others. Family. Friends. Meeting new people and having new experiences while traveling. All of these things in color, in reality, in all the magic of the senses.

Social media is wonderful, but it is no substitute for sharing someone's company, looking into the eyes of another person, hearing the inflections of a loved-one's voice. You can see lovely photos of a place, but there's no comparison to feeling the air on your skin, or inhaling the scent of a place.

You don't have to go far to connect with people or to fully experience a place. The distance you need to travel is simply from your normal awareness to your conscious attention. If you have an opportunity to travel abroad, that type of renewed attention may kick in automatically. (Check out the Travel File for a great place to connect with some amazing people and experiences.) And if you don't have an opportunity to travel, consider being more present with the people you encounter everyday.

• Make eye contact with people
• Give yourself enough time so that you don't have to hurry everywhere, allow time for a random chat, perhaps with a neighbor
• Next time you give a hug, take an extra couple of seconds to soak it in
• Actually read the sign of the person asking for handouts, maybe it's true
• Next time you think of something you want, also think of something you can offer 

The more you fully experience life, the less the things in life will matter.