In Praise of the Free Cycle

We have a stuff problem in this country. Other countries do too, I'm sure, but I suspect we are worse. Basically, we have too much stuff.

We know it's true and yet. Our culture demands constant desiring and buying -- because something better has appeared --and constant replacing, because goods are cheaply manufactured and fall apart. I have lots of thoughts about this, more than I am going to go into depth about now. Do I blame greed and our current form of  unbridled capitalism? Yes. I think there are some bad built-in assumptions about what makes the our economy run and get reported as "recovering". One simple example is the basic premise that new homes must constantly be built and that this is *the* benchmark for a healthy economy. This feels foolish, baffling and short-sighted.  As someone who grew up in a well-made house built in 1850, I know that everything doesn't HAVE to be new. BUT with our current climate of uber-capitalism, God knows where we are headed.

But that's not what I wanted to write about. I am focused on what gives me hope.

Our Free Cycle gives me hope. It's really a simple idea. At work, we have one, which is a bookshelf where people put stuff they can't use or don't want. We began with extra office supplies and then it morphed into items that people brought from home. They appear one day and then are gone. It's all this extra STUFF. Rather than throw it into landfill, they put it on the shelf. Someone who can use it, takes it. That's it. Simple.



We find a wide variety of interesting items that magically appear. Right now, we have glitter glue sticks, lots of 3-ring binders, water bottles, and a large box of partly-used candles. Last week, someone cleaning out their office kitchen brought a box of with dozens of granola bars. We reached out to our friends at Faith Kitchen who will distribute them. We often find ramen and extra pairs of glasses, lots of books and one time, a haul of Christmas decorations. You never know and it's kind of a treasure hunt.

There are lots of reasons I love our Free Cycle but mainly because I know that at its heart, it represents a compassionate community. Compassion for each other and what someone might need, compassion for the earth, knowing how toxic what we dump into the soil can be, and compassion for ourselves, coming to the realization that stuff is a burden we don't have to bear.

The encore is easy: find or create a free cycle. I wish every single office and company had one. Can you imagine it?

The simplicity is deceptive. It seems like nothing but is a radical act that can change our perceptions and our lives. Go get rid of some of your stuff. I promise it can do you good.