Les Brown was known to say; “In the end, it is the person you become, not the things you achieve, that is most important.“…nor is it the stuff you collect, I might add. Don’t get me wrong, I like my stuff the same as the next person, but one thing I have discovered over the last six months, is that stuff is simply stuff.
I was reading about a family who lost everything in a house fire. In a matter of minutes everything they had worked so hard to gather over the years was gone. The family had gotten out safely and that was all that really mattered to them. The young son put it into perspective when he said, “It’s just stuff. We can always get more.”
How wise for one so young to come to a conclusion that it takes most people a lifetime to learn. We can get more, but do we need to?
I have come full circle with that concept. I have never experienced a fire, or flood, or a natural disaster of any kind, that simply swept in and took all my stuff with it. But I have been thinking along those lines of late, reflecting on that week in August when my family had to sort through all we had accumulated over the past thirteen to thirty years, and decide whether to pitch it, give it away, keep it with us, or put it in storage because we had lost our house.
I’ve often wondered if it wouldn’t have been easier simply to have lost it all in one fell swoop instead of agonizing over where it went, should I have kept it or do I still have it somewhere, packed away.
Not going to lie, those were difficult days that followed, adjusting to this new, lighter-load family we had become. But I have also come to realize even on those days that I wish my present stuff and absent stuff could reunite and reside in everlasting bliss under the same roof, I am doing just fine without it. Sometimes I miss it. I’m glad I still own the things I do, but my life has and is continuing on. For that I am grateful.
Have you ever experienced a life-altering experience that involved losing your stuff? How did it feel? How did you deal with it?
I am in a different place in relationship with material things because of my experience of losing my house. I tend to think of it as a better place, but that’s because I’m on the other side of it. Going through it, coming to terms with losing your stuff is a hard thing to go through.
I’m not judging people who like their stuff. I like mine too. I just hold it in a different manner. Nor am I making light of any tragic event that happens to people and they lose everything they own. That’s a hard place to be as well. I am saddened for anyone who has ever had to deal with that kind of situation.
Having said that, in the end, when all is said and done, It’s not about the stuff but a life well lived.
If you have experienced a loss like the ones I speak of here, I am truly sorry. Are you stuck there, trying to figure out the reasons why it happened? If you want someone to walk with you, lets connect for a free consultation. You can better tell if I can help you make space in your heart and mind to figure out your own unique next steps. Don’t do this alone~