Flapjack Friday: Taking On Tiny

Although my husband Bob and I are not quite ready to join the “Tiny House Nation” we have been influenced by the simplicity of sizing down. I am continually amazed by how easily stuff accumulates, aren’t you? As we’ve watched a number of Tiny House Nation episodes, we have been most fascinated by the process of sizing down and the various reasons why we all tend to accumulate and then hesitate to let things go. Fascinatingly, the Tiny House philosophy has prompted some deep and meaningful conversations in our not-so-tiny house.

Bob observes that he hesitates to let go of, let’s say an old t-shirt or worn out sweatshirt, because it feels like he is giving away the memory. Now I understand why he is not ready to part with his letter-jacket or the unopened Rubik’s Cube on his desk. While I am quicker to give things a toss (to a fault sometimes) the things I hold dear tend to anchor me to my ancestral past, like my grandmother’s silver or the heirloom quilts stitched by great, great-great, and great-great-great grandmothers before her. I bear a sense of responsibility to pass these items on to someone who will pass them on again to the next generation. Of course, I have also accumulated more than my fair share of books and notes and dishes and athletic wear and nail-polish and purses—I really love purses.

So, on a practical level, our conversations have prompted some serious purging: closets and storage bins, junk drawers and the linen closet have all been scrutinized and minimized. On a profound level, we are more aware of our penchant to consume and to accumulate. Taking on Tiny has provided us with some clarity and some checks and balances—all acquired in the COVID-fog.

What if you were assigned 200 square feet, what would you consider essential?