I came across this article whilst purging my overfull (don’t get me started) email inbox… The title snagged my attention and as I read, the author quickly drew a parallel between death cleaning and cleansing oneself of societal programming to overconsume. And even with acute awareness of the misery overspending and overaccumulation of objects can bring, I still buy more than I absolutely need. But now I consciously limit my purchases to practical items, and while I make sure I use them, I don’t really NEED them. Try as I might, I’m no hardcore minimalist.

At the moment, I have five lemon and four lime plants that I grew from seed. This whole thing started out as an experiment since I’d always had a black thumb, but I was egged on by my Peter Pan of a husband (bless his free-spirited, Type B soul) to try our hand at growing citrus trees from whatever seeds we came across in our daily routine. We collected seeds from a few organic lemons and scored a large handful of seeds from several citrus fruits (I think they’re called limón mandarina, with green rinds and orange pulp) lovingly plucked from native Costa Rican trees. Their juice is the perfect accompaniment to beer. Now they have a new friend who moved in a few weeks ago, Mr. Basil. His leaves sure taste good but apparently, I won’t have lemons for a few years. Gardening is an active meditation for me and I like to eat, so it’s worth the wait. I also have dedicated space to keep our gardening accoutrements organized and out-of-sight – and I didn’t break the bank to support this interest.

I know firsthand how easy it is to slip into a habit of buying unnecessary crap and being overwhelmed by it. Overconsuming is bad enough, but when you don’t have the funds to support a shopping addiction it can land you into some serious debt, which WILL make life very hard for you. I know this firsthand as well. Debt is not to be taken lightly, folks. If you reeeeally enjoy the act of browsing and selecting items; fine, go through the motions, but let them sit in your virtual cart a few days before you hit that Place Your Order button. Or just close out of that window and move on with your day. Poof. Assess whether you have similar items already (yeah, I’m talking to you, with your 10 whatevers in the same color and style that you never wear). Can you use an item you already have to get the same job done (now I’m talking to you, kitchen-gadget enthusiast)? If you’re in the act of impulse shopping IRL consider putting down your bag of stuff and walking out of the store (sorry restock guy). If you REALLY need something you can come back for it.

The next time you have the urge to shop for stuff you don’t need, take some accountability. Be proud that you reject this insidious programming – that you refuse to be a shopping lemming, ever-nearer to the cliff of seemingly insurmountable, totally-preventable debt. Make thoughtful purchases. Make less trash. Make a better world. Less is more and the old adage applies to your spending.