What is Necessary?

Why was this so necessary again? I was looking through a box of stuff I had brought from home to my wife and I's one bedroom apartment. It was a giant, bulky, awkward to carry paint holder (ideally used for artists who need a handy place to store their numerous bottles of paint. While I do not consider myself a starving artist, if one was looking in on us from the outside, you might call us that. Koah and I are both crafters, and love everything having to do with art and design. We are doing our very best to make our second floor one bedroom as stylish and cozy a nest as ever you saw, but now I am struggling with a couple of items that I just don't see using anytime soon. I brought a Nerf gun for heavens sake. When did Nerf guns become necessary  items? I will tell you: never. 

What is truly valuable to you? Better question: How do you figure out what is really valuable to you? One day, all our worldly possessions will be meaningless. So why do we cling to them now? We box up and store all our items till TLC comes to our house wanting to make another 'Hoarders' episode out of our lives. We cling to them because we think they give us meaning. That we are defined by our possessions. Our possessions do not define us, they bind us. It is our actions that define who we are. Our actions are dictated by our beliefs and our thoughts. So when I get home and look at that box of what I thought were "necessary" items, I will go against my nature and try to rid myself of these chains. 

Where am I going with this? Well, what ties you down? What makes you not want to do something? Too often I hear athletes complain about worries or small things that go on in their daily lives, and how it affects their performance during practice, or even a meet. The fact is, you need to let go of those worries. Save them for a time when you need them. Are those worries necessary right now? And when I say right now, I mean here at practice? No, they are not. Save them for after practice when you have time to focus on fixing them. Don't let outside thoughts cloud your mind in the pool. Same goes for your life out of the pool. When you are living your life, going about your daily business, moving boxes from the closet and opening them up to find blankets or Nerf guns you forgot you had, think about what is really necessary for you to continue to live your life to the best of your ability. What you own does not define you. Your actions define you. Go out there and be great!