Hello friends! I hope that you are having an amazing week! I thought that I’d begin this blog with a little joke. One that I certainly did not make up, but a joke nonetheless. One that has certainly gotten many an eye-roll.
“Those your church pants?”
“No.”
“Then why are they so holy?”
(Hehe!)
On Monday, I ripped my jeans while sitting down for dinner. Which is fine, but this is my THIRD pair of jeans I’ve ripped in the past couple of months. Two of which I ripped whilst at work! Which is totally embarrassing, but luckily Bobby was able to bring me a new pair of pants to wear.Which doesn’t feel great, but it did get me to thinking about a couple of things.There are many emotions that can be felt when ripping one’s jeans. (Or maybe I’m just a tad sensitive…) Annoyance — this was my last pair of jeans! Embarrassment — This is the second time that I’ve ripped my pants at work! Or even worry — I really can’t afford to buy any new jeans! And I have felt these things, but I’m trying to shift my way of thinking.
- I currently have three pairs of jeans that need mending, which is coincidentally the number of jeans I own. I much prefer wearing dresses or my overalls. My initial thought was to go buy a couple of new pairs, but instead, I’m going to mend the ones I already own. This will save money and I’ll also be able to practice my sewing skills. It’s so interesting to think about how our way of living hasn’t been around for very long. Our culture of buying, buying, buying is a relatively new one. The days of mending what’s broken seem to be long gone. I really don’t want to say that everyone is this way, because I know of some lovely people who put in the effort to fix what’s broken. I, unfortunately, have generally been the kind of person who buys new things when they break. I’m trying to get myself out of this consumeristic way of thinking. I want to love each and every thing that I own and I want to feel the desire to fix it. It also shows a sense of pride over one’s possessions, which I think is important too. Why own items that we don’t have a use for, or items that we don’t love? I suppose there is some sort of comfort in owning things, but I don’t want to receive comfort from things anymore. Or at least to that degree. I am working on being more conscious of what I own. I want to only own things that I love. This will also help me want to mend what I have, because I won’t want to part with it.
- Instead of getting down on myself for gaining weight and ripping holes in my pants, I’m choosing to be kind to myself. These things happen. They can be fixed. Our bodies, much like our lives, are perpetually changing. It’s important to take care of our bodies, but whether or not a pair of jeans fit is not representative of our overall health. This also had me thinking about something else that I really cherish about slow living. Slow living includes making food in the home, instead of eating out. Bobby and I have gotten a little lax about it and have been eating out much more than I’d care to admit. This week we’re doing a no spend week and it’s been wonderful, of course for the bank account, but it’s also forced me to be a bit more creative with what we eat. We’ve been having some really fun meals, using up items in the cupboard that may have been there for awhile. I think that it’s much easier to eat healthy when you’re preparing your own food and I think this is one reason that I’ve been able to be a little kinder about ripping my jeans. I’m making efforts to improve my health, so there is absolutely no point in beating myself up about weight.
I love the idea of mending clothes instead of getting rid of them because it’s beneficial for the Earth, one’s pocketbook, and one’s sense of worth. There’s such a sense of unique accomplishment when mending something, be it a dining room table, a cracked teacup, or even a frayed pair of jeans. While we’re being kind to our possessions, make sure we’re being kind to ourselves as well. 🙂
XOXO,
Mattie Mae
Midwest mattie 