At a recent event, a tiny-house enthusiast asked me about the size of my home. When I told her, “It’s probably around a thousand square feet,” her response was, “You could do better.”
Really? Could my family and I, in fact, “do better”? Depends on what you mean by “better.”
In my twenties, “better” meant bigger, more expensive, higher quantity. And then when I was first intrigued by minimalism, “better” meant smaller, less costly, dispossession.
But over the years, minimalism has helped me find the middle ground. Today, “better” means more appropriate, ideal, fewer but higher quality.
What the woman’s question actually told me was that a thousand square feet wasn’t ideal for her life, and if she lived in my home it’d be inappropriate for her lifestyle.
What’s appropriate for me may not be appropriate for you, and vice versa. Living intentionally helps us define what “better” means in the context of our own lives.
Said another way: it’s not the size of that house that matters; it’s how you use it.
