Too much stuff

Perhaps my propensity to be lured by advertisements and deals drew me to this work. When I was asked to model jewelry for a museum when I was six years old, I wanted ALL the jewelry. When I was around the same age, my parents had a friend call to impersonate Santa. When he asked me what I would like for Christmas, I had a list of items based on commercials I saw during my Saturday morning cartoons. That was the one and only time Santa called. When I was in my twenties and visiting my aunt in NYC, she had to drag me away from the hawkers at Bloomingdale’s cosmetics counters. If I’d had the money, I would have walked out with so many potions that promised to make me more beautiful, and therefore, my life would be enhanced. I was gullible. My wise aunt knew better. 

“Avoid comparisons” is great advice - if you take it. Even now, I catch myself envisioning a more fashionable me. To that effect, I end up spending too much time “shopping” for things to make me more fashionable.

Believing we need more to attain something, whether it’s fitness, beauty, health, or success, adds up to clutter. We may actually need some of it, and that’s okay. But do we need all of it? How is it adding to our life, and is it sparking joy?