Want What you Have – Chapter 2

where to begin? this whole exercise has brought so many thoughts to mind and some of them are still swirling in my head.

if you haven’t read chapter 1, you can find it here.

i realized fairly quickly in following my own suggestions that this whole concept is more complex than it might appear at first glance!


i mean there’s the gratitude component of appreciating what you already have, but on the flip side, there’s the not wanting what you don’t have aspect (and its related consumerism issues) which is quite different.

and then what about accepting yourself exactly as you already are? that one always gives me some trouble. i mean i know we need to accept and love ourselves – just as we are. but yet aren’t we always striving to be better, learn more, etc? i haven’t quite figured out exactly where the fine line falls. let me know if you have some insight here!

possibly the hardest part of all of it, however, comes in accepting your circumstances in life exactly as they are. it’s not hard for me at the moment since things are going well. obviously that isn't always be the case and i know trying to fight “what is” (or even complaining about it) is pointless wasted energy. but acceptance can be a real challenge. and i think that - acceptance - really summarizes the whole exercise.

not buying anything was a piece of cake for me. i chose a stay-at-home day. (is that cheating??) i just put the home improvement discussions and camera lens ideas aside and trashed the ads in the paper without a single glance. no problem for one day and i do feel a new awareness about this. plus i'm already super frugal. my mother was dutch, what can i say? we used to make fun of her thrifty ways, but guess what? i internalized them and i'm happy i did (especially in this economy!)

i'm not a packrat. every summer i go through everything in my house (one small piece or cupboard at a time) and toss stuff. in spite of that, i found clothes and food i didn't know i had (ever tried tuna casserole made with fettuccini???) and books and music i had totally forgotten about. i had a great time listening to my old cassette tapes!

so i'm really glad i did it and i feel like parts of this little experiment will stay with me.

 let me know if you tried it or are thinking of trying it and what you learned. that's really what it's all about!!