My world has been turned upside down. I’ve realized what it really takes to be free…
As of two months ago I was sitting pretty with a killer studio in downtown San Francisco, enough work for four people, and living the high life in the swanky night club scene. Four years in a city full of opportunity had delivered in every way. All those fifteen hour work days seemed to be finally paying off. The stress of making rent no longer hovered over my head.I had everything I would ever need… a 3G iphone, iMac, iBook, Kindle, iPod, big TV, view of downtown, and a closet bursting with clothes. Pretty damn good for a 23 years old (pat on the back). I was safe in my bubble of stuff. Worked to the bone, but safe. One day off a week, but safe. The perfect life… or so it seemed.
Today I sit in my half empty apartment, writing my one month’s notice to the landlord. A hot pink Razr in all of it’s scratched glory vibrates beside me. A handful of hangers support whats left of my wardrobe. And the pitter-patter of soft kitty feet is missing (don’t worry my cats are with my parents in CO). Money in the bank, passport and visa in hand… I am officially 5 weeks away from leaving for a two year trip around the world. Free like a bird.
Four months ago when I began planning my escape…my freedom from a life of too much work and not nearly enough living…I never thought it would be this hard to get rid of stuff. Stripping down the life I had worked so hard to build seemed so backwards. What was I doing? Was I seriously willing to give up my comfortable existence in beautiful San Francisco, leave friends and family, and give up my iPhone(!) to throw myself into the world with my life in a backpack? My short answer…HELL YES!�
In theory trading in all your stuff for a life of travel and world experiences seems like a no-brainer. But as I realized when my couch and book selves started walking away, it’s not that simple. I was seriously amazed at how attached I was to my stuff! I almost cried when I had to handover the iPhone. NO JOKE. For the one hour that I didn’t have a phone my thoughts started to scramble…”what if someone is trying to call? how do I set up my new phone when I don’t have one!? This Razr is soooo archaic! I’m so lonely now….” This is true insanity. Life does not stop when the blackberry is gone, when you can’t search the web, when you can’t spend an hour digging through clothes you never wear to find the perfect outfit. Instead life blossoms!
Life becomes simple again. You start to notice what’s around you…the now. Time with friends, a walk down the street.. it all becomes more colorful and vivid when you aren’t worried about checking your email or updating twitter. Now is the experience..it’s all that life is. Now is what I have found. What I want to experience more than anything…where true happiness resides. And if stripping down my material possessions is going to help me do that then that’s a “sacrifice” I am more then willing to make.
With this thought in mind and it being the first day of Spring and all (yeah for sunny weather!) I suggest you challenge yourself to delve into Spring cleaning. Make space for new experiences in life by clearing away the excess. It takes courage in a society fueled by consumerism and you’ve got it.
The big question is…would you give it all up for a chance to be free?
