This mission began as an assault on possessions–on “things.” But the universe had other plans.
People can be superfluous. More precisely, the role a person takes in one’s life can need scrapping. Should a colleague be a confidante? Is a relative better suited as an acquaintance? Should a lover be just a friend?
The role a person had previously played in my life was the first of my effects to depart. You may be wondering how this fits within the scope of this mission–how can this be “clutter?” I wondered that myself. I believe we know intuitively how this is true. The “mind-body-some sort of soul” paradigm provided some guidance. The answer, at least in part, is clarity, and how the lack of it is an irritant to the human condition–mind, body and soul, although perhaps in unequal measure. Lack of clarity is maddening, distracting to the human condition–like a mosquito bite left unscratched. To explain fully what I mean would require a backstory that would, quite frankly, bore you and embarrass me. The details don’t matter. We set out to discover the nature of eliminating excess and our search has yielded its first clue. I love a mystery.
Clarity, clarity, surely clarity is the most beautiful thing in the world,
A limited, limiting clarity.
I have not and never did have any motive of poetry
But to achieve clarity.
-George Oppen
An Idle Hand 