Mission to Minimalism

The other day, ploughing through a stampede of human bodies at Victoria station, I stumbled (quite literally) over numerous vagabonds equipped with their dogs, sleeping bags and rucksacks. Bliss I thought – sheer bliss. Granted they weren’t out camping during the festive season and they weren’t quite the free spirits I endeavour to be, but they had one thing I wished for – minimalism.

I am a big fan of the empty room, that’s probably why I adore hotels. The perfect bed, the empty wardrobe, the glossy bathroom and nothing but a lamp on the side table.

To top it all, I spent yesterday evening watching Motorcycle Diaries. Che Guevara’s journey of self discovery through Latin America with nothing other than pen and paper just reinforced my ideal.

So taking inspiration from the vagabonds of Victoria Station and a bit of Che, I overturn my entire room and find myself buried in a sea of sentimentalism. Sitting amongst an endless heap of letters, diaries, school reports, toys and God damn it even dried flowers I realise I couldn’t be any further away from achieving my goal.

Call it is a female frenzy but it seems I am a big fan of legacy. I have kept a diary since the age of 15 and cling onto everything that means anything. This way I can show my 18 grand kids in 2057 (jeez) the first bouquet Granddad gave me, the first letter he wrote to me, the first A* I got in school. As cheesy as it sounds, I would give just anything to see one photo of my Great Grandmother.

So sitting in my heap of “stuff” I wonder what on Earth I am going to do with it all. After much contemplation, I stack up my long line of boxes, pack them up, take a deep breath and...put them right back where they came from. At that moment I discover that sentimentalism is quite different from minimalism.

What actually does go for the bin and charity bargain basement is the pointless clothes I have purchased over the years (rest in peace belly tops), jewellery and space eating bits and bobs. De cluttering has massive benefits for personal development (you know the story - a clear room, a clear mind) but it’s distinct from my minimalist ideal. They are two separate entities and it takes a tramp, a Christmas movie and an overhaul of my room to discover that.

I realise minimalism requires you to abolish excessive materialism. Keeping what you need to live and keeping what you want to give. The rest is irrelevant. I realise what I set out to achieve is impossible. You cannot be a minimalist in a society obsessed with materialism.