Appreciating life like toilet paper

One woman told a bride, “Live in the moment as you walk down the aisle. It’ll be the biggest moment of your life.” So says MaryJanes Farm. I say pfffffffffffffffffffffffffft. Man, whoever said that must have had a crappy dull life. Sure, it’s a big BIG moment, but not the biggest in your life. The biggest moment in anyone’s life is RIGHT NOW. Why? Because you’re alive and that’s a miracle enough. Waking up and thinking, “Wow, geez, I’m breathing….thank God.” Yea, I’d say that’s the biggest moment and it gets more amazing every day you get to experience- at least that much more valued. Like toilet paper, when it get down to the last 20 sheets on the roll. Like my toilet paper, which is in desperate need of refuel. Like my refrigerator- housing merely questionable looking carrots and protein bars that my freezer thought polite to perfume. In my attempt to be frugal and nutritious, I thought I’d polish off the yogurt and rice cereal. How this combination tastes like tuna is beyond me. Yes, I need to go grocery shopping. Desperately.

Slow progress. My camera recognized the face, so at least I know it's not too awful.

What you don't know is that these are stacks of books. This is why two avid readers should never accompany each other to the library.

I’ve been reading a book called “Not Buying It- My Year without Shopping.” Written by the most atheist, left winged liberal feminist I have ever read (not judging, just giving the perspective) it actually makes a few good points. She argues that we have become so entwined in our need to purchase things that our dreams, personalities, and cultures become inseparable from stuff. Her point, stating first that the mind and body are no different, is that when we find something we like, it awakens an emotional response, thereby defining how we act, why we desire it and how we fantasize about it. She uses an example involving lime green pumps. The girl who MUST have them is probably fantasizing about dancing in them with a hot date. They give her confidence. They awaken dreams and desires. Take them away and you tell her not to dream. In short, take away the goods and the culture soon fails.

 I see her point, but I think the body is just a vessel for the mind to explore and learn, symbiotic, and parted only in death. Opposite of her opinion, I think the reduction of goods forces the mind to look past material wants and focus on the now. I think our minds are so starved for true meaning that we consume just to fill the pit. If our culture was to lose 50% of our spending power, our mind would obviously find some other way to define itself, or find entertainment at least. She is very much against the spiritual end of discovery, but just knowing how humans are, I think material goods are the very distraction to spiritual completion. Jesus told his followers to drop their Earthly possessions and follow Him, the Buddhists hold that the origin of suffering is to transient things, Hinduism recognizes materialism as a step to spiritual enlightenment (basically, letting go and moving on) and etc. All I’m saying is that deep down, we all know that material goods are momentary distractions from the big questions we don’t like to think about. It’s so much more fun to think about a new sound system, then work to death for it, then realize you aren’t so happy and then work to get the next biggest thing than it is to, say, think about the state of the soul or where we came from. I think we only allow material goods to shape us. Mental discipline can break that. We can choose to practice intangible attributes- but that’s too hard compared to KOTOR.

I’ve been blessed, or maybe cursed, to be near broke and forced to find entertainment elsewhere. That’s not hard for me since I never spent money anyway, but all this time I have has awakened the 9435734593485734 interests I’ve managed to stash away. Jack of all trades. I get so easily distracted- there is so much I want to do and learn- that I overwhelm myself and then get depressed. Baby steps. And secretly, to be honest, I wouldn’t mind a smaller house. I really like not having much. I really really do. Even in the fridge. Maybe not toilet paper though.