What do you actually own?

Examining our self definition ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ [bullet journal](     “The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” ― Henry David Thoreau Vienna, Austria Dear {NAME},  In spring I feel compelled to purge what I own. This year, this impulse was amplified by the passing of a relative. I spent the first months of 2024 sifting through a life’s worth of things. This is what she owned (or was it her late husband?). We kept asking ourselves: who owned what? Did it matter? Over time that question shifted to: what do we really own?  We define ownership by what is ours. Yet, here was a stark example that nothing is ours given enough time. At best we are the temporary custodians of all objects -- including our bodies. How can we truly own something that will be taken away from us? Is there anything that can’t be taken from us? I believe there is.  We can’t truly own things, places, people, even our bodies. What we can own is our relationship to those things.  We can own our care, indifference, kindness, our cruelty. These qualities are unique to us. There is no one like us. No one cares like we do. No one resents like we do. We are singular expressions of different ways of being. These can’t be taken from us, but they can be cultivated by us. It’s our choice.  We can choose to define ourselves through owning external things. However, we risk feeling valueless, because without the house, money, or family that define us, we don’t exist. We often see this play out when celebrities or the wealthy fall from favor.  We can also choose to define ourselves by the qualities we intentionally cultivate. Then we become invaluable, because without us, they don’t exist. This is what happened with my relative. We packed away countless objects we’ll never remember for people we’ll never forget.  So for this week, I submit this for your written reflection: What if you already owned the most valuable things you will ever have? What would they be? What can’t be taken from you? What will you do to take care of them?  Thank you for taking the time,  Ryder [The Stealth Set includes an Edition 2 notebook, pen, and loop]( The Playlist - [Stealth Edition](: Everything you need to Bujo. Nothing more, nothing less. So you can focus on what matters: what you make with it. The Stealth Set is a limited collector’s set featuring your favorite Bullet Journal tools. The set includes the Notebook, Pen, and the Loop all in an ultra-sleek black colorway.  If you're ordering from the EU, please order through Leuchtturm directly or a local seller. - [Man's Search for Meaning, Victor Frankl]( - one of Ryder's favorite books that reminds us how we can hold onto our own values and internal meaning no matter the circumstance. Shop [Image of The Pencil]( The Pencil [Shop]( [Image of Pen Bundle]( Pen Bundle [Shop]( [Image of Edition X]( Edition X [Shop]( [instagram]( [YouTube]( [pinterest]( No longer want to receive these emails? [Unsubscribe](. Bullet Journal 223 Bedford Avenue #1157 Brooklyn, New York 11211 Can't see this email? [View in Your Browser](