Talera v Materialism
Posted 9th May 2011 at 12:57 PM by Talera
I’m not what I consider to be materialistic. I do not need the latest and greatest items. If I need an item to do A, B and C I will buy something that does that and not see the point in getting one that also does D, E and F if it costs more.
Yet I own a lot of ‘stuff’. This tends to be things that look like crap to everyone else but mean a lot to me, for example, I have an origami dragon made from dragon print proper origami paper which was made by a good friend when I was in college.
To reduce the ’clutter’ this causes I often have them packed away in boxes where I can pull them out every six months and go all warn and fuzzy with sentimentality.
I remember not only what happened to bring about the ownership, but also things to do with how I was back then. All bright eyed and not yet jaded by the professional world that came with some of my earlier career choices.
When the flood came through, I didn’t lose major possessions. I lost this sort of stuff. Yes I also lost most of my comic collection and some books, but those were not what I cried over. I cried over losing the first ever birthday card I bought my child and the first one he made for me. I cried over losing the things given to me by a dear friend who no longer walks this earth. Those things cannot be replaced by insurance and those things hold so much value to me. I cannot imagine how I would have felt had I lost everything, whether it is like others I know recently, in a fire or anything like that.
So it reminds me that as I age I will forget some of the memories associated with my items no longer owned. I may start to lose touch with that bright eyed girl I once was. I had to find a way to anchor myself without using those things as to who I once was. It reminded me just how much I need to let go of any form of possession and instead use my friends to remind me who I am, which is not materialistic.
