Fetters and Jailhouse Walls: Part 2

So...

I just finished writing Fetters and Jailhouse Walls and in an on-line conversation about the post, I typed something that turned out to be a major epiphany (why do my epiphanies only come to conscious attention after I speak or write them?). That epiphany triggered this post.

One of the big issues involved in disposing of material excess is deciding what to keep. I've struggled with this because I have a lot of stuff, and for each item I've had to consider whether it was something I'd need in my new life, whether it was something worth transporting to Hawai`i, and whether or not it had emotional significance to me. That's too much consideration when you have as much crap as I do!

So the epiphany was this; for me, the things worth keeping will fall into one of the following categories:

1. Necessities
• basic clothing
• basic shelter
• basic hygiene items
2. Tools
• tools required to practice your trade
• tools that empower you
• tools that enrich your life
3. Aesthetic Items
• things that are beautiful
• things with which one creates beauty
4. Enlightening Items
• things that stimulate the intellect
• things that stimulate the intuition
• things that challenge assumptions

I'm not suggesting that these categories are altogether comprehensive, nor am I suggesting that they're universal to everyone. What I'm suggesting is that these are the things that are important to me. And if anything I own does not fit easily into one of these categories, I will not regret disposing of it. To me, these are the necessities: physical needs, tools of empowerment, things of beauty, and things that awaken me.

That's not to say that things not in these categories are automatically on the chopping block but if I have to choose between something that is in one of these categories and something that isn't, that which isn't will go.