Maybe More Isn’t Better

The whiteboard in the library read:

Question of the Week:

If you had to give up all of your possessions but one, what would you keep?

I told the librarian, Martha, she was getting to philosophical on me. This was a question that required more thought than the previous ones. I took the hour before recording my answer—

My journal

I find that the less happy I am, the more I desire things. Conversely, the more happy I am, the less I need. Many sages throughout history have mirrored this sentiment. Many of my influences of late have as well, people like Mike Posner, Tim Ferriss, B.J. Miller, Aubrey Marcus, Thomas Aquinas, and David Goggins. Things don’t make you happy. Being you is joy enough.

So why a journal? Because I can find a computer, a phone, clothes, and my favorite books again, but I can’t recreate my thoughts. I need something to remind me of who I was and who I’ve become, as well as something to sketch out a plan of where to go next. If I lost all my possessions, I believe a journal with a few empty pages would be enough to remember what this life is really about.