Everything you own, owns you.
(Note: I post this in part because the original intention of my previous post was about simplicity, not meant to advance an argument for contemplation over action, as it seems to have been interpreted, at least in part.)
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I agree with this, really. And have been moving (slowly) in the direction of shedding more and more of what has been "owning me".
ReplyDeleteBut if you'll allow me a little tangent, I'd suggest that ownership isn't always a bad thing. As I'm getting my head ready to go back to Africa, I'd argue that what you don't own can own you as well. When you don't own food, hunger owns you. When you don't own meds, disease owns you. I could go on, but I think you see my point.
Perhaps the greatest benefit of being wealthy (which includes all of us) is choosing what will own us.
You're absolutely right, Wilsonian, thank you.
ReplyDeleteIt's really a matter of context, isn't it?
"It's really a matter of context, isn't it?"
ReplyDeleteYes, indeed.
Ironic that i've read this just as I prepare to go out and buy a new scanner because my old one has broken after five years' trusty service. I think it just needs fitting with a new bulb, but is there any easy way to do this? No. I know, because I've checked the instructions and even taken the damn thing to pieces.
ReplyDeleteSo I think built-in obsolescence is part of the reason are possessions own us. When a relatively cheap piece of kit breaks, the accepted answer is to buy a new one, not try to mend the old.
Do I really need a new scanner? Well that's a different question and obviously the answer is no I will not die without one. But it's a constant tool in my visual creative journey.
But then does my creativity own me? To what extent do my modern human activities require me to own more 'stuff'?
As I look around me, at all the books (around 2000), DVDs, computer programs, paints and papers, cameras, iPod and speakers, cooking equipment, gardening stuff (mostly unused) and everything else that feeds my various interests, I reflect that just because I don't own a lot of clothes and other 'girlie' stuff, doesn't mean I live simply.
Perhaps it's our activities as much as our "stuff" that own us?
Thanks Val, and Tess.
ReplyDeleteTess,
"Perhaps it's our activities as much as our "stuff" that own us?"
Perhaps.... Your comment is thought provoking. Thank you. And what you wrote about planned obsolescence is right on the money!
I always like to provoke a bit of thought!
ReplyDeleteBTW, obviously my struggle to spell the word obsolescence on a Sunday morning bc (before caffeine) blinded me to my use of the word "are" rather than "our" later in the same sentence!! ;-)
All is forgiven "bc." :)
ReplyDelete