Accumulated Stuff
Have any of you moved to a new home recently? Moving to a new home is a difficult process. Of course, it is a blessing to have a roof over one’s head, but that gratitude can easily get lost in the transition. One of the biggest challenges with moving is what to do with our accumulated stuff. No matter how much of an organizer one may be, stuff accumulates. It is so easy to fall prey to the law of accumulation, which states that the longer you live in a home, the more stuff you accumulate. A corollary states that the more space you have for storage, the more stuff you accumulate. One doesn’t have to look very far to see the explosion of self-storage units designed to help us temporarily try to defy these two laws of accumulation. Why do we do this to ourselves? Is it because all of our stuff is so great that we can’t live without it…even though the basement or closet or storage locker is so jam-packed that you couldn’t find that indispensable item even if your very life depended on it? Or perhaps it’s because it would be a shame to throw away something perfectly usable…even if the local thrift store doesn’t want it. Or maybe we think our heirs will most thoroughly enjoy an unexpected week’s “vacation” to sort through our amazing stuff to add to their own growing collections after we pass away?
To all of these reasons, my response is a big UGGH! The honest truth is that we define ourselves by our stuff. We accumulate faster than we can use. We spend more time organizing or sorting stuff than we do enjoying it. Or we shove it into a closet or basement or garage or storage locker when we’re too darn tired to enjoy it or deal with it. I am as guilty as anyone. I really like my stuff, and have a hard time parting with it. I might read that book sometime in the future. All my favorite music is now available online, but what if I ever want to listen to that old CD again? I got such a great deal on that shirt that no longer fits and is no longer in style (maybe it will be again if I keep it long enough). I really admire those who don’t seem to need much stuff. I have a family member who never takes photos but rather just makes a mental picture. He only has a few books that he reads over and again. He dresses simply and economically. He travels with only a small backpack. What would that feel like? Hard to imagine, right?
We have become owned (or at least possessed) by our stuff. It holds us prisoner and keeps us from the freedom to live life. Have you ever thought about losing all your stuff? Like from a tornado or house fire or similar? It would be sad, but then you would start over. Would you buy all the same stuff to replace what you currently own? If not, why are you keeping what you wouldn’t rebuy or replace? I have never thought to ask any of my patients with terminal cancer how they view their accumulated stuff. I wonder if they care much about it anymore. Do they go dig through and reorganize their basement treasure horde? Or is their limited time and energy more wisely spent on relationships and connections and experiences? Why do we have to develop a life-threatening or life-changing illness to help us realize how unimportant our stuff is? And how precious the time and true presence with our loved ones really is?
The Bible teaches us “"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matt 6:19-21).” St. Ambrose reminds us that if we have two shirts in our closet, one belongs to us and the other belongs to our neighbor without a shirt. As we begin this season of Advent in preparation for Christmas, it might be the perfect time to look over all of our accumulated stuff and truly decide whether it is helping move us forward or holding us back from the freedom God envisions for us.
