MY FAVORITE THING(S)

Now that I think about it, I have very little things I feel attached to. In fact I almost concluded that I didn’t have any yet until I realized just how attached I am to my phone. There is something interesting about the fact that I’m so attached to my phone now and it’s the fact that I didn’t even started using a phone until I was almost an adult (generally accepted age). I used my sister’s phone to play games, my dad’s phone and even my aunty’s phone but I was never in a haste to get one for myself back in secondary school even when it seems like I was the only one left (I know I wasn’t).

When I finally got a smartphone was after my senior secondary school examination. I was happy because I was patient enough to wait until then (that was an intentional decision by the way) and I didn’t even worked so hard to get a phone, someone just passed it on to me. Even back then, I wasn’t even attached to my phone because I could easily drop it somewhere and even forget where it is. I had other things that were so dear to me and they weren’t the normal things - not possessions, they were people. Even at a young age, I learnt the value of people in my life and I still do but then, I have also come to terms with the fact that nothing last forever so I always try to minimize my attachment to things.

I have a phone I have been using since the year 2021 and it is still with me till date. This was my first phone that wasn’t passed down to me but was bought by someone to me. It’s over 3 years and some months and I have saved a lot of things on it until I got the current phone I’m using now. And now, I feel so attached to this new phone because I have literally every important thing to me on it. There is nothing I can’t get when my phone is with me. Is it money to buy something? A friend I need to talk to? A document I need? A message I need to send to someone urgently? A book I need to read? A picture I need to see to remember the good old days? Name it, this phone has literally the major things that I hold dear.

Growing up, I never liked the idea of being so attached to any device but now I understand that it happens because I’m there now. I’m someone that loves taking pictures of anything as long as it looks unique and appealing to my eyes. I usually make use of my old phone to take some of these pictures but I realized the camera was very poor and that was when I made up my mind to save up to get myself a new phone. It took me 2 years to save up for this phone and when I finally got it, it became my most favorite possession and that is because it’s the first time I’m getting a phone for myself and also because there are so many things I can do now with just my phone.

Having my phone contradicts my minimalist lifestyle digitally because now I keep so many photos and files on my phone but at least it has helped me save a lot of space in my room, hehe. I’m actually suffering from digital clutter at the moment and it can be distracting sometimes. Well, I sometimes take my time to declutter my digital space but not during my exam period because I don’t want to lose any important file. But besides digital clutter, my favorite possession doesn’t contradict other aspects of my minimalist lifestyle, instead it helps improve it.

Thanks to my phone, I enjoy taking an evening stroll because I know I will see so many different things I’ll take a picture of. Also, now I don’t have to have all my pictures printed out when I can just save them somewhere on my phone or even on the blockchain or on my social media handles. This way, I can easily delete them when they start becoming less useful.

Thanks for reading through. ❤️