Column: Give Me The Simple Life
Jo Mathis
You wouldn’t know it by looking in my closet or my basement or any other part of my house for that matter. But I am a minimalist at heart.
Yes, just give me the simple life.
That’s why I found myself nodding to this list of 21 things Americans are learning to live without by Rick Newman of U.S. News and World.
A good little mantra: Who needs it?
When he was 80, French poet Paul Claudel wrote: “No eyes left, no ears, no teeth, no legs, no wind. And how astonishingly well one does without them.” I’m keeping all the body parts I can, thank you very much. But as for superfluous stuff: Buh-bye.
Purging is suddenly more thrilling than accumulating. In fact, whenever anyone comes to the house now, I feel bad if they don’t leave with a parting gift: A popcorn maker. A box of sweaters. A couch.
A little deprivation can be a good thing. [Full Story]