Minimalism isn't just about decluttering

I'm pretty sure I've written about this before, but minimalism isn't just about decluttering, and I need to remember that. I write about the things I've gotten rid of (and the routines I've created to keep clutter down), but I don't think enough about how much less I acquire.

I shop frequently now. I shop for the family one day, but I often shop two other days every week, to acquire merchandise for the children's resale shop my mother started. This means I visit garage sales, thrift shops and the bins -- the Goodwill outlet center. And for the most part, I don't bring anything home for my family.

In the past couple of months I have brought home brand new (with tags!) tea towels for gift giving; a couple of shirts for myself, my husband or my kids; a couple of notebooks for the kids' school supplies; a tablecloth I immediately regretted and gave away; and a set of napkins for school lunches. I have not brought home dishes, vases, pans, blankets, toys, holiday decorations or many other items I see for sale. I'm not even tempted, and today I realized that I was not at all tempted to even look at the things that were not shop related.

In earlier times, I would have been tempted. I would have brought home lots of things that were useful, or could be useful, or things that were merely pretty. I have a little weakness for buying blankets, but we have enough for everyone's bed and for the living room, and no where else to store them. This time, I realized I'm not even looking at those blankets, I'm not looking at the glass pitchers. I've come to a place where the stuff no longer offers me possibilities of a life that would be better.

I thank minimalism for that. Life is about what you do, not about getting the stuff that would make those dream activities possible. If I actually have a need for a new blanket (a blanket gets chewed up by the dog, for example) I can easily acquire another one. After all, there's enough stuff in the world. But I have been increasingly able to disregard stuff for stuff's sake, and that's improvement, too.