Sunday, March 16, 2008

Who was this guy?

Posted by Unknown

I was looking up a reference and I found out who was actually credited for one of my favorite quotes and a personal creed I'd like to live by. The mans name is William Morris and truthfully, I have never heard of him before. The quote I was looking for reference is as follows.

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful~

I guess is really isn't so important as to who said but more so rather to just do it. William Morris has a furniture maker and designer from the 1800. He lived in England and is credited for founding the Arts and Crafts movement of the era. Apparently it took a while to get to the U.S. (as Napoleon Dynamite I'm sure would agree about the great state of Idaho). He was also a writer and poet.

Someone suggested to me that we really have no control over what goes into our homes. We are infiltrated in what corporate America, or the media or maybe even dictated by what our financial situation impresses upon us. She said that nothing really is our own opinions any more and we have merged ourselves with the masses. William Morris just happened to be a socialist and aligned himself with Elaine Marx. His writing implied that he thought that everybody should think the same things were beautiful as well. Who was to dictate that?

I disagree 100%. We do have control and we shouldn't let the media or anything influence what good we want to have in our own lives. Despite his beliefs, this quote is truly my creed to live by. In starting to organize everything I have thrown our so many things that are useless or that I'm saving for no special occasion. This includes music, pictures, and just plain old junk. First off, it's invigorating. Second, it clears the cobwebs allowing me to appreciate what I have. To find the beautiful in the every day. To truly only take in what we want to take in. Just imagine if everybody was governed by this quote. We would see the best of everybody when we stood inside the walls of their homes.
Hopefully I can move towards that idea and get rid of the stacks on paper that clutter my brain and clog my living space. I guess it's easier said than done.

1 comments:

SJacobus said...

I think we can easily fall into that trap of having what cosumerism says we should have, and certainly many do. It is definitely better to slowly acquire, consider, and appreciate what we have and wish to have.