We live in en era of materialism, there’s no denial of that. For many people, materialistic goods are far more important than anything else, whether that would be human values, interpersonal relationships or sth else.

The thing is, we have all (well, not all, but the majority of people), have persuaded ourselves, that we can’t live this life or be sincerely happy without wealth, expensive things and luxury. Somehow it has become completely normal for us, that we should have not one, but a few winter coats or boots for only one season (and god forbid if we wear the same coat or boots two year in a row, even in they’re in a great condition, cause that would be embarrassing), tonnes of tops and pants, thousands of makeup products, which we can’t even possibly use until it’s all expired. Take a look at the videos some bloggers or influencers post, where they have a whole store room of clothes, cupboards with makeup stuff – a whole drawer full of lipsticks, as if they have not one, but hundreds of lips they need to put the lipstick on; boxes with foundation, highlighters and so on.

Don’t think that I’m making fun of those people, cause we’re all pretty much the same, just with different preferences. I don’t have a cupboard full of makeup products, instead I have drawers and boxes full of decorations. If someone searched throw my boxes, they’d think that I own a huge villa, when in reality I have one small room, which certainly doesn’t have enough space for all those decors.

Those, who don’t have enough money to buy everything they see and want, dream about that, it becomes an obsession, a fix idea that they can be truly happy only when they’ll be able to afford to buy all the unnecessary crap. But is that so? Certainly not. Cause when we buy those things, they only give us temporary and fake feeling of happiness and satisfaction, after which we want to obtain even more. We’ve become into brainless consumers, hungry ghosts, who never get full, just like the No-Face from “Spirited Away“, who was becoming greedier and greedier the more he ate.

But who’s to blame for this unhealthy obsession of ours? Of course, we can put the blame on TV and celebrities, who showed and accustomed us to this new “normal” lifestyle, but in reality, we should only blame ourselves, cause we’re the ones making those choices. If we see a homicide on TV and decide to become murderers as well, it’s not the TV’s fault really. It just means that deep inside we had this hidden desire to become that same person we see and aspire to be.

The next logical question that occurs – is it possible to change and become more minimalistic. It’ll be quite difficult, cause there’s temptation at every corner, but it’s definitely possible. The first crucial step is understanding that all this is wrong and that we can absolutely live great lives, have lots of fun, be happy without al those materialistic stuff. For me, personally, past is the best teacher and example. I love watching old photos and video tapes, where I see how poorly everyone lived (well, compared to nowadays, obviously). I think I talked about this before, but everyone’s houses looked basically the same, everyone was dressed the same, didn’t have too much to show off, but instead people were genuinely more happy, jolly and alive. They saw the light and the positive side even in the hardest times, and that’s what kept them going. They knew how to be sincere and honest, cherished their friends and families, were always ready to help and support one another. And not ditch their closest friends just because they weren’t as “successful, rich or beneficial” as they used to.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to say, that we should all get rid of our possessions and never buy stuff again, absolutely not. We live in a material world after all, and it’s more than okay to buy a new scarf we really like, even if we already have 5 at home. But it shouldn’t be a priority, an obsession, we shouldn’t be ready to betray ourselves, our values for that scarf, or a fancy car or anything else. There should be the golden limit, where you buy things that bring you joy, but know the difference between “treating yourself” and “buying any unnecessary crap” in order to impress others or fit in within a certain criteria of being wealthy or successful.

Remember that in hard times when, for instance, you’re feeling physically bad, or are having a depression, loosing a close person or the peace of your countries, you literally stop caring for all the “precious” things of your possession. That’s how you understand, what’s really important in this life for you.

To end this post, I’ll bring a famous quote from “The Fight Club”, which perfectly summarizes my whole long writing: “We buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like”.