Dexter Iowa Community Site

Consider this quote from Abe Lincoln

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves."

Life seems to be about stuff. When I was young I wanted stuff that I couldn’t have. You know the usual stuff, toys, to be older, my own ninja sword. If you really think about it if it wasn’t for stuff every single letter to Santa would be very small. The first time you really learn about stuff happens in any store your Mom drags you into. When her back is turned and she isn’t paying attention to the cart you throw in the glow in the dark magic 8 ball only to have her exclaim at the checkout, “Who put this stuff in here?” That is usually followed by the admonishment that “You don’t need that stuff.” For some this is where the fine line between begging and a tantrum is learned but only by children who have weak parents. My mother was never weak.

As you age the need for stuff doesn’t really go away, it just changes to different kinds of stuff. You get an education and a job so you can afford stuff. Soon you find a place to live, which is usually selected if it has enough space for you stuff. If you don’t have enough stuff, for example you spent the first two years using a futon as a bed and a couch or every considered a lawn chair in your living room as guest seating, you go out to get more stuff to fill the space that doesn’t have any stuff.

Then suddenly you meet someone and then you get married and suddenly you not only have your stuff but someone else’s stuff. Not only do you know have to combine two peoples stuff, but your friends and families give you more stuff! It’s stuffolicious! Before you know it you’re looking at a bigger place because you both have too much stuff, but this usually only lasts a little while, because if you are not the king of the castle, and guys we all know we aren’t; our stuff ends up in the garage, out back in a shed or slowly packed away never to be seen again.

In some cases people have children and boy let me tell you do you end up with lots more stuff! The really fun part about it comes when you realize that most of the stuff you won’t use very long. When this happens you start giving that stuff to other people with children and you start to feel excited about not needing any of that stuff again, only to come home from work and meet your partner who gives you the telltale look that lets you know you are going to need all that stuff all over again.

At some point you decide that some of the stuff you have you do not want any more. In this case it is time to sell your stuff to someone who wants your stuff more than you do. This can be pretty awesome until you realize that the stuff you spent one hundred dollars on you just sold for a quarter, however you are glad to be rid of the stuff. The dangerous part of this game is that it makes addicts out of some people and the next thing you know they come home with plastic sacks full of other people’s stuff and unfortunately there is no cure for this syndrome.

One day you die, which is sad, but your stuff remains. The fun part is that now your stuff is someone else’s problem now. People may fight over your stuff, but most of the time your stuff is relabeled as junk. Regardless it isn’t for you to worry about and is part of the reason I tend to keep all sorts of strange stuff so that my kids will have to go through all my stuff to find the treasures I have hidden away. It’s always all about the circle of life…or stuff, and the reason I shouldn’t eat double stuffed Oreos before I go to bed. See you next week…remember, we’re all in this together.