Consumerism

Throughout this past year, I have been wrestling with my relationship with consumerism and the grip it has on American society. I have honestly been struggling with this relationship since I came back from studying abroad in the Dominican Republic where the basic needs of most people are barely met. While I was abroad, I had enough clothing for two weeks, I never wore make-up, I never did my hair, I ate as the locals ate, and I got used to the frequent power outages that left me with no electronics for extended periods of time. Though I thought these things would be excessively challenging, I enjoyed the fact that my phone was off for four months and that my clothes were so worn out that I had to get rid of them upon my arrival home. 

I won't lie, I am attached to my iPhone and really enjoy buying nice shoes, but I frequently feel anxiety and discomfort at the things I choose to purchase. I don't mind buying books or music or the occasional meal out, but I have recently been challenged by my clothing purchases. Is fifty dollars for a pair of jeans really an acceptable expense when I can wear what I already have or buy similar jeans for a lower price? Do I need three different pairs of boots because they are of various styles? Though I have the ability to purchase clothing and excesses at my own desire, I am uncomfortable with the fact that so easily do that.

Though this is something I think of often, I have been thinking about it excessively since Thanksgiving break started. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Oftentimes, expressions of gratitude are ignored or forgotten, but Thanksgiving offers up the opportunity to contemplate that for which we are thankful. However, this past week, and even on Thanksgiving, many people forewent spending time with family or friends to line up at Wal-Mart or Best Buy or Target in order to ensure they could get any and all of the items that were on super sale for Black Friday.  Most of these items were things that people already had or were things that people would not normally buy. Our desire as a nation to consume has destroyed our ability to share gratitude. More people show up to shop on black Friday than people show up to vote. Imagine what could happen if as many people who did research on Black Friday sales and went shopping did the same for elections? Many citizens would be able to make educated decisions in the polls and our government would better reflect the wishes of our population. 

So - though I feel like a major hypocrite because I did buy a pair of jeans on Cyber Monday - I think it is important to think about the toxic hold that consumerism has on our society. I think my days shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday are over and I hope that perhaps that will change for others as well.