Stuff

Stuff.  There's stuff everywhere.  Maybe not so much in your life, but then again maybe yes.  Even as a retired being with little to no interest in things, I find myself dealing with stuff much of the day.  What do I mean by 'stuff'?  Really basic daily items fit the category: dishes, pots and pans, food; soap, towels, hair brush and tooth brush; vacuum, broom, dust cloth; and on and on and on.

Then there's the routine for me that may not be the routine for others: raking leaves, pruning trees, watering pots, tools, feeding the dog, watering the humming birds.  There's also getting the mail, burning the rubbish, getting firewood for the stove, picking up the magazines, fluffing the pillows, charging the computers, putting in the hearing aids and false teeth.  As a hobby there's crocheting with boxes of donated yarn, making boxes from salvaged lumber, disposing of the wooden scraps and shavings.  Other than the moments when I'm writing, such as this blog, reading, taking a walk; I'm dealing with stuff.

I am the creator of my own stuff.  It's not the fault of someone else.  I could eat out, do more reading and writing - but even that requires a medium such as a book, tablet or computer, maybe a pencil and paper.  By my nature, I use stuff: working with wood or yarn, caring for animals, and cooking which creates dirty dishes and the movement of food, caring for the house and yard.  Regardless of the motivation for stuff, when you intentionally think about what we do throughout the day, we move a lot of stuff around.

There are exceptions to the routine.  For example, recently we visited with a widow to get some wood - 'stuff' - that her husband had stored in the barn.  It was a good sized barn and it was full of stuff.  We loaded the pickup with lumber and barely made a dent in the pile in the barn.  Much of what filled the barn - we didn't venture into the garage which was equally large and equally full of stuff - are similar to what we have gathered in our barn.  However, he seemed to have double and triple of each item we had, and many types of stuff we didn't have.

Stuff continues to amaze me.  I've come to the stage in life when I would rather give the stuff to someone else than gather more stuff thinking that some day I might need it.  Where is your "stuff" attitude?  How much and how little can we or should we live with or without?  While this earthly body requires stuff, I would like to think that all I really need is a hug.