What we have lost in the fog of "New and Improved" is an appreciation of old things.
Experienced things.
Mature things.
Broken and repaired things.
Dependable things.
When I look around the house, some of my favourite things are older. Stuff burnished with time, that glows with experience and is STILL useful as well as beautiful.
The Japanese would say old, weathered things are very wabi-sabi, and age is an advantage, not a liability.
In wabi-sabi the focus is on finding beauty in the imperfections of life so we can accept peacefully the cycles of growth and decay.
"New and Improved!" should be met with a righteous amount of scepticism and hesitancy.
Is it really improved? Is it really better? Does it actually represent progress?
Or is it only profitable?
Developing an appreciation for old things can save money, eliminate waste, and increase our aesthetic enjoyment of the cycle of being.
Do you have any wabi-sabi favourites in your home?
“...in repairing the object you really ended up loving it more, because you now knew its eagerness to be reassembled, and in running a fingertip over its surface you alone could feel its many cracks - a bond stronger than mere possession.”
―
As an "old thing" - experienced, mature, broken/repaired and dependable - I heartily endorse this post.
ReplyDeleteMy home is filled with old things. Same furniture for decades, some over 100 years old now. The dishes I use are the same ones we used in my childhood. The only new things are clothing and even that is years old now. I love being surrounded by old things and the history and memories that come with them. As long as it doesn't become cluttered with things that I can't let go!
ReplyDeleteWe've been enjoying a series on Netflix (they just dropped it, so not sure where to find it now) called "The Repair Shop." It's a British show and shows people bringing their cherished, broken family heirlooms to a collective of craftspeople to have them repaired. It is such a wholesome and lovely show - and so gratifying to see old, beautiful, deeply-meaningful things being restored. I think part of what makes it so nice to watch is living in a throw-away culture. If you can find it, watch it! -Erin
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