Are Simple Living and MInimalism a Fad?

Books, podcasts, blogs, news articles, stories... Simple living and minimalism are everywhere.  Some will argue the differences between them.  Others will protest any labeling at all because that complicates things.  Crossing political lines, religious lines, and racial barriers, the popularity of simple living and minimalism has grown and grown and grown.  We now have documentaries about minimalism.  We have created some mini-celebrities out of those that discuss and write about and "sell" the virtues of minimalism and simple living.

Like Fidget Spinners, is this a fad? 

I can see the popularity of this fading for some.  There are too many people that haven't learned the lessons that lead to minimalism.  They may get caught up in the hype, but then feel the need to surround themselves with things.  The psychological aspects of consumerism haven't been defeated.  As long as shopping and acquiring things brings a "high," a payoff inside people, then there will still be malls and cheap clothing.  Amazon is not about to close up shop because so many people have stopped purchasing their vast array of goods; especially since receiving anything in two days without the effort of leaving home is such a bonus. 

I also see that many people believe that living a "simple" life, with less things, is not for them.  They feel it is boring.  They enjoy their stuff.  They don't even consider reducing items often, because they get so much of their identity from their things.  It is simply a part of them and how they live. They see each item that surrounds them as representative of their life, of their significance.  They won't part with much because it would be like parting with a part of themselves.  They know, in their head, that they can't take it with them when they pass away, but the visual reminders around them reinforce their identity and, in many ways, bring them comfort.  Whereas I might struggle to part with something that has sentimental value, these people see nearly every item as having sentimental value.  To get rid of these things would be devastating to them.

Others struggle to get rid of things because they feel value from them.  They are the ones in the resale shop, buying this and that knick-knack.  (I have been this person in my past.)  Each item, while probably not really worth much, feels like it brings value anyway.  (Think Precious Moments figurines.)  Just the collecting seems to fill a void in them.  And so, they collect and shop and hunt for the things that they believe will help make them more complete on the inside.

But there are those of us that have tried that route, with complicated, stuff-filled lives, and been left empty and broke. There are those of us that tire easily of trying to compete with a standard with which we will never measure up.  There are those of us that feel the stress in their physical bodies when life gets complicated.

Some of us have had the severe stress of trying to do it all and have it all take a physical toll.  That's right, we have made ourselves sick due to high-stress lives.

So, while the popularity of simple living and minimalism may lag a bit as some feel that it just isn't for them, there will be those that intentional choose to live simply on purpose.  Their goal isn't to buy a bunch of things.  It will look different in some than in others, depending on what they value.  Some will live on homesteads, growing their own vegetables and raising chickens.  Others will have small homes and a love of travel.  Some may live in an apartment where they don't have to feel the pressure of fixing all that goes wrong.  Some won't look like minimalists at all, with a larger home, but they will have made the choice to reduce belongings or to reduce the demands on their schedule.

For me, the process has been one of starts and stops, ups and downs, and slow progress.  I minimized my outside the home obligations, only to start college.  Getting rid of things has been slow for me, but each bag and basket donated or trashed feels like a weight lifted.  My husband and I have cut our bills down and paid ahead on things where we could so that our one income living didn't seem so harsh, but then decided to help someone in hard times.  It isn't one smooth, easy process.  It's a journey, with mountains to scale and valleys to cross.  Simple living isn't always so simple. 

My Five Daughters

 

Probably the part of the journey that has brought about a simplification process in my life was my children slowly growing up.  A few short years ago I had five daughters in my home.  Life was different then.  Now three of them are grown.  One is married.  I have a grandson, who I adore.  Another daughter is getting married in a few weeks.  I have two children still at home.  One will be in her final year of high school.  My youngest is now ten.  Some of the changes in my life have happened because of the passage of time.  I am not "empty-nesting," but life is certainly not quite as chaotic as it was when I had a full house of daughters... and all their friends.

For this reason alone, I don't believe simple living and minimalism can be relegated to the status of "fad."  Life changes.  For me, it has gotten simpler.  I can look back at pictures from just a few years ago and wonder how I accomplished anything.  Now, I am home alone, which has been a rare event in my life, and just relish the quiet.  I feel no urge to fill the quiet with sound.  The quiet, broken only by the sound of my little dog eating and the birds singing in the June sunshine, is the sweetest sound in the world.  Simple living and minimalism won't blow away on the breeze like a fad.  In many cases, it is a rescue from a world of busy, loud, chaotic, shallow, and unkind.  It is a realization that all the stuff will never fill the hole inside; and a stress-filled life will kill a person faster than a smoker binge-eating McDonald's at a nuclear power plant that has been breached.

Fad?  Some will say so.  

Not me.  I am loving this journey.