The Learning Umbrella

Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping by Judith Levine.

Practically Perfect in Every Way by Jennifer Niesslein

I find the idea of “The Big Project” really appealing.  That’s how I end up doing things like baking 1000 cookies in a year, or going vegetarian for 3 months, or setting huge walking goals for a certain time period.  I also like to read about other people’s Big Projects, and so I’m a sucker for all of these “My year of …” books which seem to be springing up the last few years.

The project in Not Buying It is to go without any “unnecessary” shopping for one full year.  Levine and her boyfriend decide that movies, dining out, and even Q-tips are discretionary items, and they do without them all.  The book is a nice blend of the personal, the anecdotal story, the interview of folks in the Voluntary Simplicity and other movements, a little review of related literature (Thoreau anyone?), and some current statistics.  Reading Levine, I felt as though I would like her if we met in person.  And I found her message of moving from “consumer” to “citizen” an inspiring shot in the arm for my own antimaterialism.

In Practically Perfect, Niesslein sets out to self-improve every aspect of her life: home, marriage, motherhood, finances, social, health.  She gets the best-selling self-help books and throws herself into project after project, with very mixed (or negative) results.  In the end, she concludes that people have become too focused on improving themselves, and perhaps we should get out and try to improve the world we live in instead. 

Both books made me somewhat uncomfortable, or even angry at times.  Neither woman is at all spiritual or religious, and they dismiss that aspect of life pretty quickly.  Levine admits that some people may find the Voluntary Simplicity path a more fulfilling and rewarding path because they are naturally more spiritual or nature-oriented, but she doesn’t think that aspect of the movement should be emphasized for everyone.  Niesslein seems to have a phobia of anything that she doesn’t consider “mainstream”, and she rejects any self-help avenues that include spirituality of what she likes to call “New Age stuff”. 

I’m bothered by that attitude, especially since spiritual growth is the base of all personal growth, in my opinion.  And I know that we need to be active citizens, but I also think that “the personal is political” is a valid point.  If we don’t change how we live our own lives, how do we go out and challenge others to change theirs?  If I’m not coming from a grounded place, how do I achieve any change in the world?  Can the government regulate all the changes, or do we need to see society change also?  If we want to change society, what is more effective than groups of people coming together to make personal changes, such as the Voluntary Simplicity movement or the new Green movement?  Maybe it’s just that this is my personal perference, to work face to face with other people, at the grass roots level of society.  And I do know we can’t do it all that way - but how effective is it to rely on all top down change either?