Why Less Sometimes Feels Like More
This morning I looked at my sixteen-month-old son.
His onesie was covered in watermelon stains.
Normally that frustrates me. Not because of the stains themselves, but because they represent one more thing to deal with. One more item to wash. One more task on a list that never seems to end.
But today I smiled.
My parents are on holiday and we're staying at their house. For both of us, I packed just one sports bag.
You'd think that would create more stress. After all, when you only have a few outfits, a stained onesie matters more.
But somehow it felt easier. There were fewer choices. Less thinking. Less deciding.
A few clean clothes. A few dirty ones. Enough.
And sitting here, I suddenly remembered coming home after four and a half months of travelling through South America, about fourteen years ago.
For months I had lived out of a backpack.
When I got home, a wardrobe full of clothes was waiting for me. You'd think that would feel luxurious.
Instead, I found myself reaching back into my backpack and putting on clothes I'd already worn for months.
Not because they were nicer. Because they felt simpler. Lighter. Easier.
I even promised myself I wouldn't buy new clothes anymore…
A month later I was back at H&M.
Apparently it didn't take long for fashion, comparison and fitting in to start feeling important again.
What strikes me is that I've experienced this more than once.
The moments in my life that felt the freest were often the moments when I had the least.
Less stuff. Less choice. Less to manage. Less to think about.
And yet I still find myself reaching for more.
More options. More possibilities. More certainty.
As if one part of me knows simplicity feels good, while another part keeps believing something is still missing.
I don't really have a conclusion.
Just an observation.
That some of the moments I've felt most content were also the moments when I owned the least.
And that makes me wonder how much of what we pursue actually adds to our lives.
And how much of it simply adds more noise.