For the last few years I have tried to follow a philosophy called "voluntary simplicity." This is an actual movement based on the idea that the more simple you can make your life, the more freedom you will attain. The idea that this can be reflected in the contents of my wallet seems a little silly, but it really works for me. I don't carry a purse and my wallet is extremely small. It is the size of a credit card and allows for only a very small number of items. The only cultural artifacts include my driver's license, my debit card and my medical insurance card. I never carry cash. I've found that anything beyond this is completely unnecessary. What information could someone glean from these items is pretty minimal. My address. My height, weight, eye color. The fact that I wear glasses. That I'm an organ donor. Where I bank and my insurance provider. That's about it for the major details. The fact that I carry so little in my wallet is probably more revealing than its contents, really. Does my wallet help construct an image of my identity? Could someone make any assumptions about who I am based simply on my wallet? I would hope that it tells people I am fairly organized. It might indicate that I am a private person. For the most part, though, my wallet and its contents reveal very little. It does not tell people where I shop for my groceries, if I belong to a gym or to a library. There are no receipts for clothing, music or book purchases. I carry no photos of my family. As far as anyone knows I could be a single woman who lives by herself instead of someone who is quite the opposite. I have a husband, children and extended family who live with me in my home. My life can be quite chaotic. I believe this is one of the reason I choose to live as simply as possible. My wallet is something I can actually control.

On February 14, 2008, the Santa Clara University newspaper wrote an article about a man named Tom Eichenberg who lost his wallet in 1975. It was later discovered and returned to him. One of the most interesting points in the article was the following: "The wallet's contents weren't just a reminder of how he had changed since 1975, but how much the world had changed in just 33 years." Would my wallet be a reflection of the year 2009? I really doubt it. There is nothing particularly trendy about my hair style or clothing in my driver's license photo. At some point my bank and insurance provider might go out of business. Beyond this, however, without looking at the expiration dates on the three cards I carry, it could be any year around the end of the 20th century and beginning of the 21st.

I really like that I am able to keep the contents of my wallet to just the bare minimum. I think my wallet is a perfect representation of my values - a desire for simplicity and modesty. My life can be unpredictable but my wallet is always there for me and under control.