Glancing around his room, Gerry saw the usual mess. There were shelves overloaded with books, old comics, and magazines. Many more were lying around on the floor, and there were even a few old toys he couldn't bear to throw away. His closet was bursting with clothes, most of which he never wore anymore. Gerry thought about tidying up for a moment, then sighed, lay down and picked up a magazine instead.
Gerry 環視他的房間，看到了一如往常的髒亂。書架堆滿了書、舊漫畫、雜誌。地板上散置更多，甚至有一些他捨不得丟掉的舊玩具。他的衣櫃裝滿了衣服，大部分的衣服他都不再穿了。有一會兒 Gerry 思考著整理整理，然後，他嘆了口氣，躺了下來，反而撿起一本雜誌。
A few days later, Gerry was browsing through a book lent to him by his sister, who normally couldn't stand going into his room. As he read, he came to realize that it could provide the solution to his disorganized lifestyle. The book outlined a way of life called "minimalism," a philosophy through which some people find happiness by simplifying their lives. They get rid of many material possessions, keeping only the things they truly need or simply cannot bear to part with. In the process, they may feel they have recovered control, enhanced their personal well-being, and started living more meaningful lives.
幾天後，Gerry 在瀏覽一本他姊姊借他的一本書，他姊姊通常無法忍受走進他的房間。當他在閱讀時，他漸漸了解到這本書可以對他沒有條理的生活方式提供解決辦法。這本書勾畫一種生活方式叫「極簡主義」，經由這種人生哲學，有些人藉著簡化生活找到了幸福。他們摒棄許多的物質財物，只留下他們真正需要或無法捨棄的事物。在這過程中，他們可能感覺他們重新獲得控制，改善他們個人的幸福，並開始過著更有意義的生活。
The notion of minimalism has been around for centuries, and people normally just referred to it as "living simply," or something like that. In the last few years, however, there has been an eruption of online blogs, magazine articles, and even best-selling books declaring the advantages of "decluttering." That means buying fewer things in addition to throwing away much of the junk choking your living space. You may think a "minimalist" is someone living in a sparsely decorated room with few possessions, all of them neatly packed away. For most of us, though, simply adopting an anti-cluttering attitude can bring about improvements that will make life a little less complicated, even if that only comes down to being able to find some missing keys.
極簡主義的概念已經流傳好幾世紀，人們通常都稱它是「簡單生活」或類似的東西。可是過去幾年才大量出現許多宣稱「捨」的好處的網路部落格、雜誌文章，甚至是暢銷書。那指的是除了把佔有你生活空間的許多廢棄物品丟掉，還要少買一點東西。你可能會認為極簡主義者是將少之又少的個人物品整齊收拾，住在幾乎沒有裝潢的房間的人。可是對我們大多數人而言，僅僅是採取「捨」的方式就可以帶來使生活稍微較不複雜的改善，即使只是能找到丟到的鑰匙的小小結果。
On the other hand, knowing what to throw away might not be as easy as it sounds. It can be hard to discard something you have a strong attachment to, for example. A best-selling book by Marie Kondo called The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up contains lots of useful advice. One method she suggests is to start by removing everything from your closets, drawers, and shelves and putting them in a big pile. Then you go through the pile one thing at a time and ask yourself if each item brings you joy. If it doesn't, then it is a strong candidate for disposal.
另一方面，知曉要捨掉哪些東西可能不像聽起來一樣容易。例如，要丟棄有強烈感情的東西會是很困難的。近藤麻理惠寫的一本暢銷書《怦然心動的人生整理魔法》裡包含許多有用的建議。她建議的其中一個方法是從移走你櫃子、抽屜和架子上的每樣東西開始，把它們堆成一堆。然後你一次一樣，仔細檢查這一堆東西，問問自己這件東西是否可以帶給你快樂。要是沒有，就是可以捨棄的最佳候選事物了。
These days, lots of students are drowning in the ocean of stuff they possess. Perhaps you recognize yourself in Gerry. If so, having fewer possessions will present you with the opportunity to enjoy more space, more time, more peace, and more freedom. You may see that there is much more to life than owning things. By throwing out unnecessary material goods, you will be making more room in your heart and mind for the "stuff" that really matters. Gerry understands this and is eager to learn more from his sister's book. Unfortunately, it has mysteriously disappeared under a pile of other things.
現今，許多學生淹沒在他們所擁有事物的汪洋中。或許你在 Gerry 身上看到自己。要是如此，擁有較少的個人物品會使你有機會享受更多的空間、更多的時間、更多的寧靜、更多的自由。你可能會了解到人生中有比擁有許多東西更重要的事。藉著丟棄不需要的物質，你能騰出更多的心靈空間來儲放真正重要的東西。Gerry 已經領悟到這一點，急切地要從他姊姊的書中學得更多。不幸地，那本書已經神秘地消失在一堆其他的東西底下了。
