Relinquish

I went to a cosmetic store recently to buy me some pregnant-friendly, no AHA, no bleach, paraben-free necessities. "Bare essentials" as marketed these days. It should really be cheaper for having less in it, I thought. The cashier must have read my mind: she decided to throw quite a number of samples in the bag. And perhaps to further ease her guilt, she happily added a 2011 desk calendar. It did make me happy. I love calendars!

The next minute I could, I excitedly looked at my new scheduler. To my surprise, not only did it not contain any of the Andy Warhol prints I'd hoped it had, it didn't even have dates in it. It just had days and blank pages. A whole year of blank pages made from 100% recyclable materials. Bare essentials. Nothing more.

The hardest part about a clean slate is deciding what to abjure. Habits die hard. Calories are stubborn. Characters are ingrained. Things are sentimental. People attached.

But it is true that the simplest way to be happy is to relinquish what makes you not.

It all comes with a price. But is must be well worth it.

After all, bare essentials is really all you need.