I infamously told my mom after reading Walden in college that when I got older and had a home, I would own no more than one pot, one spoon, one plate, etc. Well, that was 15 years ago. I now have a box full of pots and spoons. I have many things, but less than most people I suppose. I ironically own two different copies of Walden. My whole life, materially speaking, fits rather loosely in a 10 foot by 7.5 foot storage unit. When I stare at it I think, "this is what I have to show for 15 years of waking up 5 days a week and working at jobs that for the most part I didn't like". Boxes. Bins. An office chair. Of course, I also have my experiences and my memories, which I'm told occupy a measly 7 percent of my brain. Between the metaphysical and the physical, I still have lots of room for more stuff. Room, but no desire. It feels quite liberating to fit everything attached to me into a small room and a misshaped head. And as far as the metaphysical, I think Kurt Vonnegut said it best: "I'm very tired of thinking. It doesn't seem to help very much. The human brain is too high-powered to have many practical uses in this particular universe. I'd like to live with the alligators, think like an alligator." Perhaps what I need to do is clean out my emotional warehouse and put the items up on Ebay. What is the going rate for discontentment? I'm starting it at $.99 with no reserve!
contentment is priceless.... you ought to find some of that and auction it off. However, when you do discover it, I doubt very much that you'll give it away... it is a most wonderful possession.
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