Taking the Side Road

“It is desirable that a man live in all respects so simply and preparedly that if an enemy take the town... he can walk out the gate empty-handed and without anxiety.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden    

    I don’t know how much more difficult this year would have been if several months ago I hadn’t responded to God’s calling to lead a more simple life. It’s amazing to look back and realize how He has been leading me ever so gently in this journey. It hasn’t been easy, but it has been so worth it.
    
    We live in a very fast paced world. Driving down the interstate last night I could feel the tension of life at high speeds. Why were we all driving so fast? Where was everyone going in such a hurry? Why didn’t I take a side road and gone home at a slower speed and  a more normal heart rate? It feels often that we live life as if driving on the interstate. We speed through our days working on our never ending to do lists. Just today Facebook reminded me of a post I shared a few years ago. In it I said that I needed to finish my to do list quickly so I could go outside and play with my son. Why didn’t I go play first and then worked on that always growing to do list?
 
    So over the years God, who has been trying to do some major remodeling in my life, has been telling me to slow down, and I have. It has been a slow slowing down until the beginning of this year when I think I finally got the message and just went for it. It hasn't been easy because I’ve had to get rid of a lot. I got rid of a lot of stuff, plans, ideas, habits, and a whole lot of myself, but all of that is nothing in comparison to what I’ve gained. I’ve gained less stress, more calm, I’ve gained a cleaner home, opportunities that I hadn’t had before, a smaller waist line, better sleep, more energy, and my favorite, I’ve gained time. Time to use on what is truly important in life, like playing with my son, talking with my husband, serving others, reading, writing, learning, and growing.
    
    I have by no means achieved the perfect simple life yet, but I have tasted it, and it’s delicious, abundant, and I want more of it!
    
    It has been interesting to read my Bible lately with the perspective of a simple life and realize that God has been calling us to it all along. He doesn’t want us to be so busy. He doesn’t want us to be worried. He doesn’t want us to neglect ourselves or our loved ones because of a lack of time. He doesn't want us to be so distracted with our busyness. He wants to give us beautiful abundant lives, and I’m learning that this comes from a simple quiet life focused on Christ.
    
    So today maybe take the side road and slow down a bit. Get home at the end of the day and have a simple supper of steamed vegetables with a side of artisan bread. Maybe leave the cleaning and the shopping for later and play a board game or catch outside with your children. Maybe today you don’t have to get out of bed and quickly have breakfast because lunch is coming in a few hours and we need a healthy amount of time between meals for digestion. Maybe today plan for a brunch and a lupper (word we've made up for a meal later than lunch and earlier than supper.) Then go back to bed and enjoy your family’s company and bed hair, all wrapped in the warm covers, while talking and laughing about nothing and everything. And that’s exactly what I did…

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."

- Hans Hofmann

Desiring a Simple Life

    I met two friends for lunch and the conversation quickly turned towards the desire to live a more simple life. We talked about our busy schedules, extra curricular activities, the demands of life, and the large houses my friends had purchased a few years ago. We talked about their expensive mortgages, the time spent cleaning, and how they wished they had made a different decision. One of them mentioned that the move up to a larger home had not been what she expected, and now she was planning on simplifying. We all agreed that life is too complicated. A simple life… sounds wonderful!
    As we talked I began to think back at my own journey towards a more simple life. It all began when I got the opportunity of spending five summers and winters in the beautiful state of Alaska. After two years living in town, we decided it was time to move out of the city and live as Alaskan as possible. So we purchased a home in the middle of the woods, where friendly chickadees, moose, fox, and shy bears became our neighbors. The house was small, but our five acres bordered public land, so we literally had hundreds of acres of Alaskan wilderness to discover and explore.
    During our time there, I learned to slow down and enjoy a different pace of life. One can’t start a fire to warm up the house in a hurry, and getting out the door in the winter required several extra minutes to get all the snow gear and warm clothes on. Plus there is no way to enjoy the northern lights in just a couple of minutes. One must linger for a while looking up at the night sky, while green, red, white, and sometimes purple lights slowly dance in the sky above. Also, what to do when the temperatures go below freezing, but to head indoors and spend time with family and friends while eating cookies and drinking hot chocolate?
    I had been a city dweller for as long as I can remember, living in close proximity to people, with little outdoor space to explore. Alaska was a completely new experience for me, especially after we moved to our little house in the woods. It was there that I gained a deep love for nature and a passion for birdwatching. It was there that I learned to truly appreciate the beautiful natural world God had created and look at my surroundings with different eyes. We would often go for hikes, sometimes to explore a frozen pond near the house, others to find a stream slowly crossing the wide landscape, and yet others to simply enjoy the fresh air and the soft forest floor. I enjoyed all sorts of wild berries that I used in my kitchen in home made delicacies. I would sit on my porch listening to the gentle rain that would fall for many hours during the warmer months, or soak up in the sun in the summer, or wrap myself up in a warm blanket, and watch the northern lights silently dance the night away. Summers were active enjoying the midnight sun, when the state gets filled with flowers and tourists, and the vegetables grow to uncommonly large sizes. When time came to move out of the Last Frontier, we were forced to leave behind many of our belongings and with that it was added to my journey towards simple living, a life with less stuff.
    The fact is that a simple life has many benefits. More time with family and friends, less time cleaning and organizing; more time learning new things, less time worrying. More time to fulfill our dreams and spend time on what is truly important. I like this and I desire more of it.
    After lunch, me and my friends all agreed that we should strive for simplicity, and each left with the desire and a plan to build a better life for us and our family. Now that I’m back living in the city, I want to remember the things learned in Alaska and live a simple life even here. I got home, grabbed a large bag, and started going through some of my things I know I don’t need. Then I looked at my calendar and to do list, and came up with a plan to simplify the rest of the week.