Am I lazy?

From “Catholic Minimalism: Purposeful and Intentional Choice for the Home” (the community group on Facebook):

I don’t usually go for self-deprecating humor (surely God doesn’t like us disparaging His creation!) but in the past I have caught myself saying, ”I’m not really ‘a minimalist;” I’m just lazy.” What I have meant by that is that many of my attempts to declutter and minimize the introduction of physical things into my home are rooted in my dislike of frequent tidying, complicated dust-collecting surfaces, and the general maintenance that comes with owning things. Those reasons combined with living in a small space propelled my interest in seeing just how many things I can live without.

By engaging with minimalist content (you will hear me reference Josh Becker’s “Becoming Minimalist” in future articles, no doubt), I have taken on challenges that are certainly designed to save time in the future, but in the process of habit-changing and perspective-altering, I found myself working hard and even frustrated by the effort involved. In contrast with laziness, many of the strategies for managing one’s possessions require consistent motivation and effort before they become second-nature. For example, the minimalist challenge to “…immediately complete any task that can be accomplished in one minute or less” might be a hurdle at first despite the obvious long-term pay-off. Throwing some household object away because it requires too much maintenance doesn’t make you “lazy” either- particularly if the lack of the thing gives you time to focus on the more meaningful moments of life. In short, endeavoring to save time in the future requires effort in the present that is not consistent with laziness, but more so with hard work and a desire to challenge one’s habits.

Change is hard. But change is essential! Particularly as Christians, we know that radical transformation of many of our habits and drives is the route to salvation. We must be merciful with ourselves, as God is with us, in order to effectively continue on this journey of change- which precludes the voice inside that calls you “lazy”!

“…to live is to change. And to be perfect is to have changed often.” Bl. John Henry Newman