Living things: a mindful guide to acquiring stuff

Abstract

“Living Things: A Mindful Guide To Acquiring Stuff” is an illustrative publication that aims to spark an interest in the spiritual relationships young adult consumers have with their objects. To be a helpful guide in changing their approach on living with and acquiring things. When purchasing objects, we don’t tend to think about the material lifespan of the object, how long this item would last in our homes, and when it would eventually leave our spaces to be a part of the landfill. How does the spiritual value of our items and the meaning they hold relate to their time in our lives? Can we learn to choose our belongings wisely to fit our lifestyle and prolong their lifespan in our homes to reduce waste in the long run? This project references the work of Csikszentmihalyi, Rochberg-Halton, and Kondo to understand how items that bring us enjoyment can help us achieve our ideal lifestyle, using the essential mindfulness pillars of Shapiro to aid us in cultivating this mindset shift. This book will explore what it means to truly own things, a chaperone to point consumers in the right direction in re-evaluating their relationships with their possessions and give some insight on how their objects can better support them. To not just be meaningless matter but beloved living things.