I like beautiful things. I'm especially fond of beautiful shoes, jewelry and decorative items. Because of this, our shoe closet overflows, necklaces tangle in the drawer and our house is a museum of well made randomness.
Is a love of beauty bad? If it consumes you, yes.
Can you enjoy a beautiful thing without having to own it? This is a question Native Americans could have posed to white settlers insisting on owning the land. Perhaps this mentality is my birthright. All I know is that my consumerism is killing me. I spend too much money on things that aren't going to increase my quality of life. A Course in Miracles states "Nothing I see in this room [on this street,
from this window, in this place] means anything." If you doubt the validity of this statement try to find solace in an antique vase the next time your life crumbles around your ears. Anything with a price tag on it is ultimately an illusion.
So what do I intend to do with myself now that I've admitted my consumptive weakness? I'd like to say I have grand plans to go home and give away most of what I own. I'd like to say that I won't buy a single item that isn't a necessity from now on. That probably won't happen overnight. It may never happen. What I will do is take ownership of my addiction to a consumerist's lifestyle and gradually take steps to awaken from the land of illusion.
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