Blog #7: Simplicity

   Hello! This is Yu Yamanashi. Today, I want to talk about simplicity. I have always been interested in simple ways of life, but when I came across this book, my view of life changed completely.



   This book is called How to Live Simply and it is written by Dominique Loreau, a French woman who has a special view of simple life. (Click on the title to jump to Amazon webpage where you can have a glance at the first few pages of the book!) Before reading this book, I had never felt any guilt in buying things that I wanted until they filled up my room and I lost track of what I had. In a world of mass production and mass consumption, I think we all feel one time or the other, "I wish I had a bigger closet to put my clothes in," or "Why didn't I buy a bigger drawer when I knew I was going to have so much stuff to put in,".  This book tells you that all those way of thinking is nonsense, and simplicity is a richer way of living than having too much possessions. I was shocked to read that people are better off when they own only things that would fit into a suitcase or two. However, when I raised my awareness of keeping my life simple, things actually did start to change. I felt more free and light-hearted.
   What do you think about our life full of things today and making efforts to make it simple? I'm looking forward to hearing your opinions!