Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Markus Almond of Brooklyn to Mars.
I paid off my last credit card today. I didn’t feel relieved or excited when I serendipitously eliminated my credit card debt. Nor did I flirt with the idea of buying useless things with my freshly available credit. ‘It is what it is,’ I thought as I clicked ‘confirm payment’ and watched the stressful balance disappear to a big black zero.
When I started jettisoning my belongings last year, I didn’t do it for financial reasons. I was in the process of moving into a new apartment. I was tired of lugging around so much stuff. I was tired of unpacking, cleaning, organizing and shopping. I started getting rid of things. I found Joshua’s book Simplify and came across excellent websites like Becoming Minimalist and The Minimalists.
From these inspiring people, I not only learned how to declutter, digitalize and simplify, I also learned how to focus on art, savor healthy relationships and embrace meaningful experiences. There are enormous benefits to living a simple life – financial independence is one of them. But I was unaware of these benefits when I began dragging expensive furniture, clothing and stereo equipment down two flights of stairs to the curb last winter. I just knew that I wanted it gone.
I discovered that once I got rid of stuff, I had very little desire to buy more. Financial independence was a happily welcomed side effect. It was the result of my newly formed skepticism towards material consumption. I now cringe at advertisements and avoid shopping malls. Since my outlook has changed, I’ve watched my debts slowly vanish.
Today I’m sitting in Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City, NY. I’m surrounded by willow trees, wild flowers, and the occasional little kid bumping along the boardwalk on a scooter. There are water taxis and fishing boats coasting in the East River and above them is every building on the east side of Manhattan. When the sun starts to set, the greens and browns of the cityscape will gradually fade into a billion dollar light show – a universe of tiny windows flickering on and off as workers leave, lovers come home and janitors shuffle from floor to floor turning lights on and off as they enter and leave.
It’s all beautiful and I haven’t spent a dime today.
If you look closely, you can see little flashes popping on the observation deck of the Empire State Building – tourists too caught up in forgetful excitement to disable their flashes. I hope we can all experience that overwhelming wonder and excitement. I hope we all forget to disable our flashes. Life provides many gifts. Most of them are free.
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For more words by Markus Almond, visit brooklyntomars.com.
Image: Markus Almond
Holly says
Beautifully said. Downsizing enabled me to change careers from one which paid the bills to one I am passionate about and feels like my ‘calling’. I am glad my aspirational 30s are over and I am in my simplifying 40s, and I hope that I made the switch in time to teach my daughter a better way to live.
Paula Grieco says
Markus, Beautiful what you saw at Gantry Plaza State Park when you were in the present, not weighed down by posessions. Free!
Markus Almond says
Thanks Paula. Yeah, it’s amazing what’s happening around us if we just pay attention:) Best to you.
Monica says
I am on the same path. I saw my parents and grandparents struggling with so much stuff taking up time. I didn’t want that to be me. Also, I injured my leg making it harder to clean so I wanted to simplify. And my husband changed jobs so we will be moving. I continue to purge and we are looking for a small easy care house in our new location. Our son is 10 and I want him to enjoy the simple things in life like this author shares.
I read Joshua’s books as I began this process and I continue to read the blog for encouragement. Thank you!
Markus Almond says
Awesome, Monica. Moving is a great opportunity to simplify:)
Dan Bennett says
“Life provides many gifts. Most of them are free.”
So true!
Thanks for the great read, Markus!
Markus Almond says
Thank YOU, Dan. I hope you’re well.
Daniel Aipa says
That is an awesome story and thank you for sharing. I found Becoming Minimalist blog from reading more about the guys over at The Minimalists. It’s been a process of mine every week to get rid of things by donating, selling, or trashing. It has been interesting the things that I chose to hold on for so long that have just been collecting dust.
I used to come up with ‘I might need that for later’ and put it back where it was. Now I ask myself, ‘What value does this bring to my life?’. I’m enjoying and embracing the space that I am creating.
Aloha!
Renee says
Daniel,
I struggle with the “I might need that for later” when I try to declutter. I like how you rephrase that to “What value does this bring to my life?” Thanks for the insight!
Mark Adam Douglass (@MADouglass) says
Wow! It was like reading a story of my own life.
I could have changed location to Sydney, Australia and replaced your name with mine, and this could have almost been my story.
Thank you for sharing. I too have become debt free through simplicity, and am almost at the point of reflection – I am almost as far ahead as I was behind.
Thanks for a great guest post. I look forward to reading more of your work, and enjoying your great pics on your site.
Markus Almond says
Thanks Mark! Thanks for checking out the site too. I really appreciate it.
AlexM says
After having downsized and gotten rid of a lot of stuff, the next phase was to find a place for stuff we needed to retain. We moved to a new smaller house. As I was sorting through the papers I needed to store in our new safe, I came across our credit rating from our mortgage app — which I’d never seen before because my husband covered the paperwork end of the deal. Do you know, we have a *lower* score because we have no revolving debt or carried balances? We still had a very good score so that didn’t hurt too much. But the only way to bring it up was to get a credit card and carry a balance. No thank you!
And I am with you on the mall thing. My office view is of a huge mall. I never go there. Malls make me feel weird!
Markus Almond says
Indeed. Malls are like a feeding frenzy of junk.
Pierre Bastien says
Ah, I miss Long Island City, my old home.
Markus Almond says
Nice! Yeah, it’s a great neighborhood.
insulated covers says
Living a simple life is also living a comfortable life. Simplicity and contentment are ways to a happy life. Thanks for posting a nice blog.
Markus Almond says
Thanks! Thanks for reading:)
ZenPresence.com says
Like the joys of a child.
Dan Garner
5 ways to achieve simplicity at http://zenpresence.com/2012/10/5-ways-to-achieve-simplicity.html