No running water
Recently, we had issues with the water supply. For some days, there was barely any running water. My initial reaction was frustration, but then I felt so much gratitude for this experience. Too often, I take fresh, clean and safe to drink running water here in Denmark for granted. When I sketch my sufficiency list (see previous entry), I don't list things such as clean water and clean air because I take them as a given. When I dive deeper into my needs, I realise that such things are the very basics of a good and comfortable life. Perhaps the same applied to good health and the feeling of safety and security. It is so interesting to observe that, say, status items and home decorations do not matter at all when there is no good health, no running water and no feeling of safety.
Being present with non-humans such as air and water helps me practise extreme minimalism. As I'm writing these words, the sun is shining after an intense rain. Air, sunlight, water, having a shelter and food, having good health are the basics, the essentials. I do not like shopping, trying on clothes and accessories. But I appreciate standing in the shower and feeling clean and safe water on my skin, or sitting on the balcony and feeling the warmth of the sun.
There are three magpies sitting on the roof of the building on the other side of the street. They look so striking and elegant. They wear the same outfit every day. Many years ago, I had the same thoughts as I was looking at my cat. That moment with the cat made me realise that I wanted to wear the same outfit every day too, that I didn't need to reinvent myself for different occasions, different days, even seasons and chapters in my life. This reinventing myself feels so unimportant in comparison with water, air and the sun.
Living an extremely minimalist lifestyle allows me to avoid spending time on serving objects and have more time for being with the air outside and feeling the rays of the sun on my skin. I look after the objects that serve me. Many years ago a fellow human who genuinely believed that having a car equals having freedom said to me, "promise me that you will have a car". I have never had a desire to have a car and to drive. Walking is my favourite mode of transportations, and I use public transport when I cannot walk somewhere. For me, a car would be a burden, something that I would not use, something that would prevent me from engaging with my surroundings more directly and intimately. Whenever I consider inviting something into my life, I usually wonder if it is going to be as useful as the objects in my sufficiency list. I always come to the same conclusion. For instance, a painting on the wall or a dress for some occasion will never be as useful as, say, my laptop (that I use for work) or a bar of soap or a toothbrush. And none of these objects are as essential as clean water and fresh air. One might say that I don't need to choose, that I can have it all. But considering that we (humanity) overconsume, we overuse nature's resources, we do have to choose.
I do not appreciate top-down approaches to transformations. Policies can and should create nurturing spaces for transformations, but I do believe that the deepest transformation should unfold in our psyche, how we are in the world and relate with the world (the self, human and non-human others, nature, and the universe). It helps me to separate the essentials from non-essentials. Ultimately, genuine needs from wants, whether my own or someone else's. By others' wants I mean, for example, my family members' expectations of how I need to live as an x, y, z person, the wants of men, the wants of a manager, and so on.