Seeking objects of wonderment?
Every adventurer knows that a quest is barely worth undertaking if there is not treasure at the end of their journey. Shiny, beautiful and hopefully magical items are the reward for all that goblin slaying and arguing about who forgot to pack the rope, however unique and petty they might be they are only really good for showing off, it is the tale of how you got them that makes them special, the experience you gained in the process and that is what you get to share that is of real value. It is an attitude that is useful in everyday life too, understanding that it is context that makes things into meaningful possessions rather than just dusty objects.
No one tells the tale of how they brought a load of stuff from Walmart, used it for a bit and then put it in the garage or attic to the point that there were so many things that you had to rent a storage unit to cope with the over flow. That is not an interesting story, and even less so when you repeat the process with ten thousand different objects, especially when a million other people have done the same thing with a similar mix of identical mass produced items. Factories do not make magical unique items, it is not their fault, they make cheap, good enough things that serve a purpose (it might not be an important or essential but there is normally a use for most things) often they are tools that serve us, but wonderment is not often a word that comes to mind.
When we seek that special kind of object that brings us joy, that illuminates how wonderful life can be and is a physical representation of something that can only be experienced and not described, it not going to be found in supermarket. The obvious examples are pieces of art, paintings that speak to you, films that make you think and sees worlds that do not exist, dare I say it even a child can draw a picture that can make you smile (it helps if you like the child) and that is a wonder in itself as you certainly would not pay for it under normal conditions, yet is that smile not more valuable than most of the pretty things you can buy because they are just nice, rather than wonderful. Being free or priceless is not necessary for something to be special, but there is a strong correlation, you might buy a bird feeder but the birds are for free and your wonderment at their beauty and the peacefulness of their songs are available for anyone who wishes to listen.
I have nothing against buying things you need, tools, food, clothing, sometimes you just need something for a perfectly normal reason, you have a problem that needs sorting and you can buy the solution. That is a thing of joy that needs can be met, money does that, it solves negatives and I know that is not the case for everyone, there are still a billion people who live on a dollar a day, a Walmart and the ability to pay would be amazing and life changing for those people (one in seven people to be exact and drive the point home), and it is clearly sad and slightly unbelievable that it is still the case in a world where it is also possible that people can complain that their thousand dollar apple phone is over a year old. However if we start on the road of how absurd the world is we may never get to the end of the article, what is important is that if we never know that it is possible to get more out of the objects in our life, we never get to seek and pursue it.
And that joy is worth pursuing, if is an option that is on the table for you, why would you not want it, why buy another cheap jumper, are you trying to open a museum of jumpers that never get worn, is it a competition to fill up every available space in your home with stuff because there is a lot of people out there playing the same game and they have decades of experience and practise in spending hundreds of thousands of dollar. The average home has doubled in size, and there is not double the amount of people in those home, just more stuff, which seems like the reverse of what people actually want, people move to the suburbs to have space and then spends their time reaching out for community, when they could have it on their doorstep in high density fashionable downtowns, and save time. It is only in vibrant place that we get the coffee shops, micro-brewery and greens, odd shops, workshops, it is where we gather that attracts us, and it is stuff that prevents people from having a small space in a big town and condemns us to having big houses in small ponds of humanity.
However for the adventurer who wants to be a hero and needs little apart from what they carry, more is not better, there is no point in have a dozen broadswords, you want one excellent sword (probably made by an elderly Japanese man) that does the job perfectly and is durable, maintainable and reliable. The kind of sword that you build a relationship and history together, that is always at your side and has it's own spirit and identity, not a Walmart special offer two for one. Whilst you might be behind on your sword buying, I take the same attitude to boot buying, putting aside how little I like shopping and the fact that you only have to buy high quality boot once every ten years rather than buying a cheap pair of boots every year, you only have one pair of feet, why would you not want to be wearing the best possible experience on them everyday. When your boots are a pleasure to wear, everyday is made better, you walk further and it is easier, more comfortable, your life is that much more special.
This principle applies to so many thing, one wrist, one watch, glasses, coat, trousers, a bed, duvets, cooking knife, a cup, tools, books. One at a time is how you use most things, so at least have one good example of most things that you actually use in a day, and it is easy to get track, as you can just observe what you are using as you are using them. Feel free to note them down in a list, then ask the question is there a better version of what I have had contact with today, did the object that I encounter spark joy in me, did they make my experience of life better, a faulty can opener might not be important except when you want soup for lunch, a rain jacket that over heats you might just be annoying until you find out that they do not have to, and that walking in the rain can actually be a pleasure given the right equipment, but only if you know that it is a possibility. Having less gives you freedom to be where you want to be, you are less attached, have less to lose and can go and explore.
So if you want to seek objects of wonderment, you have to first know that it is possible and then have the curiosity to find them, to research, learn and discover the treasure map that surround if we choose to look. There are adventures and experiments that are available for anyone who want it, however if you want them, you are not going to find them in ordinary shops full of factory stuff, they are for the background characters, the props of the world that serve a purpose of their own and not your goals, whatever they might be, that is yours to decide. Find out what you truly need, then get the best version of those things, and if you are not wasting time and money on cheap things, you will have a surprising amount to spend on those things that bring you wonder and joy, and do not be surprised when the things turn out to be people and experience, they are the most unique things in the world after all.
