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Someone recently told me that they were tired of being
in debt and were ready to get their spending under
control. But they were concerned about the fact that
they still enjoyed spending money to pamper themselves.
They were looking for inexpensive "luxury" ideas. I didn't
necessarily have specific luxury ideas to suggest, but
what I've found over the past several years is that my
idea of what constitutes a luxury has changed greatly.
When we started on a drastic debt-repayment plan, we
had no extra money for anything but the absolute barest
necessities for almost five years. I couldn't even shop
at thrift stores for clothes -- that would've been too
expensive for our severely limited budget. We learned
to make things ourselves, accept hand-me-downs from
friends and family, make do with what we had, or do
without. It was either live like that or be forced into
Bankruptcy by our impatient and increasingly nasty
creditors.
We chose to knuckle under and do what needed to be
done, no matter how difficult, in order to pay off our
creditors (mainly some huge hospital bills from three
premature babies).
One of the fist things I noticed when we started our debt
repayment plan was the discontent that seemed to
overtake me almost constantly. I started praying that I
would discover where this discontent was coming from
so I could overcome it and put it to rest.
Well, it turned out (for me at the time) that the main
Contentment Robbers were:
1) Mail-order Catalogs
The beautiful items in these catalogs were a constant
reminder of all the "wonderful" things I couldn't have
anymore -- I overcame this Contentment Robber by
tossing all catalogs into the recycling bin as soon as
they arrived without even glancing at them.
2) Shopping Malls
I hadn't realized how much "recreational shopping" breeds discontent -- I started avoiding malls at all
costs unless I had something specific I needed to
buy -- and even then I only went in for what was on
my list and then I hurried back out before I got
distracted by some new housewares store (my
personal weakness).
3) Commercial Television
Seeing all the latest and greatest constantly paraded
before my eyes bred discontent -- I turned off the TV
except to watch videos from the library or PBS
specials with my kids.
4) Womens' Magazines
I cancelled my subscriptions -- I didn't have many
magazine subscriptions but the pages of the ones I
did have showed perfect homes, beautiful clothes,
pampering personal toiletries, etc., which really
caused me to begin suffering from a form of lust
(maybe "greed" is another word for it?).
5) Shopping Channels / The Internet
I've never watched Shopping Channels on TV but I
suppose they're probably contentment robbers for
some people. Also certain "malls" and "shopping" areas on the Internet would serve as contentment
robbers, as well.
But probably the biggest surprise of all to me was
that the longer I practiced frugal living and read
books on the topic, I found that I was more satisfied
by the simpler pursuits I was discovering than I
ever was by all the shopping and personal luxury
items that I had previously considered such a treat.
Well, we're no longer in debt (Hooray!!) and money's
still tight (being a single income family of five means
money is always tight), but I'm not discontent anymore.
I have great satisfaction knowing that our debts are
"Paid in Full." The accomplishment of paying off our
debts is a great luxury in and of itself!
Plus, through the process of getting our finances in
order, I've gained a new appreciation for the beauty
and joy of life's simpler pleasures. Shopping and
acquiring new stuff holds little appeal for me anymore.
Now I would much rather spend a day hiking a Nature
Trail and picnicking in a meadow with my kids, than
spending an expensive afternoon sauntering around
the Mall eating designer cinnamon rolls and sipping
gourmet coffees.
But those weren't always my priorities ... I can honestly
say I'm much more content since my priorities and
ideas of luxuries have changed.
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