Growing up with my big sister taught me the true meaning of minimalism, I watched her trying to live a very simple life in every way she could.
My big sister is a replica of my dad and whenever my dad travels for his work I mostly stay with my big sister who never fails to teach me contentment in every way, she also taught me a good managerial skill through her lifestyle, she didn't spend unnecessarily, neither did she acquire lots of items which she knew would be of no practical use, my sister though beautiful never joined trends in accumulating all the fancy things just to fit in, she rather taught me to rock my few outfits in different ways, rather than buying loads of them and abandon them in the process.
I call her my one in-person, she could pass as a cobbler, a hairstylist, a fashion stylist, a chef and any great life skill you can think of, I remember the day she took me to the market to buy shoe polish, shoe pin, cobbler's thread and other items just to minimize cost, she would polish her shoes herself, sew her shoes and fix most of the items at home.
I draw inspiration from how she steadily watched the people who came to fix our generator closely and after a while she learned how to service our generator herself and fix the light bulb and other stuff at home, this made us not spend unnecessarily for things that we could simply fix by ourselves, whichever was quite complicated she watched some tutorials on Pinterest and viola it's done.
Her room is so simple yet classy, and through her, she always looked for the simplest ways to solve her problems, she sets realistic goals for herself and she never struggled over what she had no control over, I learned to simplify my life for personal growth, I learned to save, to choose quality over quantity and I learned the act of giving rather than wasting items and staying organized.
Another person who has inspired me to be a minimalist is the person of Oprah Winfrey, her background and life journey is truly an inspiration to being a minimalist.
Her TV shows have taught me the value of time, I learned to make every moment in my life count by doing things that would help me become a better version of myself every day no matter how little I spend nurturing my growth.
Oprah Winifred also taught me to let go of unnecessary burdens, especially emotional baggage, the act of letting and practising forgiveness for my mental health, peace of mind and personal growth.
Letting go of things that aren't useful to me has been one of my greatest personal growth, be it friendships, relationships, habits, lifestyle or items, the fact that I do not need to seek validation from others to be happy is another level of personal growth to me, I just need to do right by my conscience and live in my truth regardless of what others think.
The simple things in life are that which money can never buy, time, family, quality friends, up building attitude and peace of mind, every day of my life, I have tried so hard to practice simple practical living, giving alms to the needy, bringing smiles to those around, focusing on what I can change letting go of things that are beyond my control and I've been living a fulfilled life ever since.
All images used are mine.
A𝖒𝖎𝖊,
ᵀʰᵉ ᵍⁱʳˡ ʷⁱᵗʰ ᵃ ᵇⁱᵍ ʰᵉᵃʳᵗ ❤