Less is More

“The hardest part is what to leave behind, ... It's time to let go!”
-Winnie the Pooh

A couple of years ago Spouse and I visited the home of some people we know. It was our very first opportunity to see their house and how they lived in it.
Despite knowing them a degree better than Spouse did, I was nonetheless taken aback by the sparseness of their home.
Spouse was almost awkward in the shockingly empty setting.
They had practically no miscellaneous belongings, at least none that were visible.
There was a lack of photographs, few items of furniture and no identifiable clutter; pale walls and unadorned floors greeted us with a blank stare.
We were particularly surprised because the pair are financially well established and it was the last thing we expected from people who could easily afford the finer things in life.
Spouse and I agreed that it looked quite as though our hosts were about to vacate the house.
We spent a relaxing couple of days in the company of our kind hosts and as we observed the house and the way they ran their lives, something about our frame of mind began to evolve.
I am certain it must have because now, two years later we wish to go back, step inside the door and gauge our new reactions.
I think that they would be of a most interesting nature.
Our hosts were, as it turns out, one of our most significant catalysts for change.
Theirs was most clearly a lifestyle choice, a certain plan to own less and to be bothered less by the weight of various things.
The entire process that we embarked upon of removing most of our possessions and flinging out more items that we bring in was partly due to the short time we stayed in that house. We barely realised it at the time save for an offhand comment Spouse made toward the end of the visit. He mused that perhaps it was not such a bad way to live after all, once one grew used to the lack of frills and extraneous material goods that usually decorate a home.
In fact, Spouse considered, he almost understood it.
These days we more than understand it: for us there is nothing better than jumble-free corners, knowing where everything is and being conscious of the fact that one's life could be happily packed into a few boxes. On the latter point we are struggling but striving and- most essential- we enormously enjoy the project we have undertaken. That last bit is vital- the whole matter of whether to have more possessions or less revolves around that single point: happiness.
What now strikes us both is our initial impression of a slightly dressed house; not simply how much we have changed but that the germ of the idea began from our own reflexes and opposition to such a lifestyle.