Consumerism
Querida Amiga,
Are you seeing all the Christmas trees that have been popping up the last couple of weeks? I keep seeing photos of friends sharing their decorated homes. They are excited to get to a season that has traditionally brought them a lot of joy. So many of us are recreating the things that remind us of happier times.
Along with all of the early decorating, I am also seeing a lot of holiday sales creeping in prematurely. These ads filling my inbox and social media feeds were starting to annoy me. I wasn’t completely sure why. Then a friend sent me a video called The Story of Stuff and it all started to come together in my mind.
This short film breaks down consumerism in the United States and how it contributes to environmental and social issues that are largely impacting communities of color here and abroad. There is one particular quote that caught my attention. I replayed it twice.
“Our enormously productive economy...demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek spiritual satisfaction...in consumption.” This is a small piece of the larger quote. Do you see why this piece caught my eye?
The mindset of the government and corporations post-WWII was for us to replace our connection to self and others with rituals that would distract us and convince us to buy more things.
In mapping out how to rebuild the economy after the war, they decided the best way to do so was through a massive campaign for us to buy a lot of things that would distract us from ourselves and our conditions.
It worked! 99% of what we buy now becomes trash. We now consume 50% more than people did 60 years ago. I suspect we are about to ramp that up again this holiday season.
Our overall economy is still hurting due to the pandemic. Massive sales and campaigns are coming at us earlier and faster. My concern for us is that it will be easier to lean into consuming more for the next couple of months. Instead of continuing the introspective journeys that many of us began over the last few months.
I am not saying to close up our wallets and spend nothing this season. What if our idea of rebuilding the economy was actually a redesign? Governments and corporations should be investing in those who were hit the hardest at this time. Redistribution of wealth is critical and necessary.
Closer to home, we can decide to use our resources to be generous with others and ourselves, without pushing ourselves to buy items that we do not need...because let’s be real some people don’t want what you picked out.
At the start of the pandemic, there was lots of introspection happening and people wanting to lean into lifestyles separated from depletion, extraction, disconnection, and hoarding. We were getting curious about possibilities for personal growth and connecting to people in new ways.
Let’s not lose sight of that hope for new ways of being with ourselves and others.
As holiday shopping ramps up, I encourage you to reflect on what has served you the last few months and what has left you feeling depleted. How can you invest in yourself to continue personal growth? How can you connect with and show generosity to others without filling their space and mind with more clutter?
It is possible for us to redesign our economy without increasing practices that cause harm.
It is possible for us to be generous to ourselves and others this holiday season by encouraging personal growth and memorable experiences, rather than consumption that causes harm.
Quiero saber de ti. How do you want to show generosity to yourself and others this holiday season, while continuing to move away from overconsumption?
Un Abrazo,
Michelle
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