Many of us are seeking a simpler life. We are making homemade meals from scratch, we’re downsizing, purging and ridding our homes of useless clutter. We are saying no to social commitments and clearing our calendars of events that pull us away from the family unit, and we are making do and doing without to keep our finances under control. We are living on less and still there are days that nothing about life seems simple!
We’re longing for a simple life…but really what we want is an easy life. Are we asking for an easy life when we are seeking simple? If we are honest most of us would say that family is complicated, parenting is exhausting and homesteading is hard!
So what are we actually seeking? Simple or Easy? I’m not sure about you, but I want a simple life that comes easy!
I wish it were that simple!
When we decided to move to the country we thought life would come easy. Oh boy were we sadly mistaken. We had to live in an RV for 2 years, learn how to grow a garden in sand, we had to build fences, dig ditches, chop wood, build barns, chase chickens, fight off coyotes, tackle alpacas, ward off angry bulls, butcher pigs, deal with droughts, hurricanes, rattlesnakes and marathon canning sessions. We’ve started projects only to run out of money before they are completed, changed jobs, dealt with death, watched children go off to war, and now are helping raise grandchildren. None of that is simple or easy.
There are days when I have to stand back and look for the simple in our lives. So many yearn for a simpler life and I have to believe what they are really looking for is an easier life. I can honestly say you don’t need to live in the country for that …you can have a simpler life no matter where you live. Simple living really has nothing to do with our homesteading lifestyle. At first, we thought it was, but we soon learn that homesteading is hard work and the simple comes from within. It’s all about living a life where you control your outcome…living of the world, …not in it.
You set the standard for how you want to live whether that is SIMPLE or EASY.
- Give up the crazy schedules and get back to your roots
- Find balance in your family unit and look for ways to de-stress the world around you
- Incorporate technology free zones and family only days
- Invest time in your family, not money
- Connect with nature not WiFi
Here are a few ways we have learned to keep our lives simple:
- Keep God first in your life
- Leave plenty of room in your calendars to just be still
- Find something to be joyful about every day
- Dig you hands in soil as much as you can and connect with the earth
- Don’t beat yourself up when you fail at something
- Always look forward and not back
- Continue to make do and do without to keep consumerism away from your front door
- Don’t become over stimulated…turn off the TV, Cell Phones, and iPads
- Feed the birds
- Plant a garden
- Spend time in rocking chair
- Connect with your community by getting to know your neighbors
If you have a desire to simplify your life, it’s easy all you have to do is figure out what is important to you and START!
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Good post, Tracy.
That was a wonderfully beautiful post! I downsized my life, quit my regular job, and started a new path when I had a daughter four years ago. People think I don’t work! Ha! I have never worked as hard in my entire life. It is however the best possible life, if you ask me. I’ve learned a few lessons on the way. There’s things that I would of done differently today. The reward of being directly involved in the outcome of the work I choose is awesome. I love seeing my daughter make connections between how our food gets on the table.
Thank you for a wonderful post!
You are so right Tracy, the simple life is not always easy! I am always making changes to make ours more simple and peaceful. For me living in the country does help, I just enjoy being away from the hustle and bustle and being part of a smaller community… xx
Tracy, I never really separated these thoughts. You did so, so well! I think what I love about a homestead is the chance to challenge myself. Working with my strength that brings about a feeling of being more alive than I could feel in a regular neighborhood. I felt I was living more deliberately. I was no longer moving by the roll of the public swarm, but rather feeling unattached to the city and attached to the rhythm of the natural surroundings teaming with life. The fear factor of the news was replaced by the calm of the clouds and breezes. The noise of the streets was replaced by the near silent beat of a dragonfly’s wings! Never an easy life, but rather a life steeped in simple joys that come with doing something on your own.
I agree with you that there is a clear distinction between simple and easy. Living simply is not always the easiest thing to accomplish, but it is so rewarding in so many ways. Getting in touch with nature is healing, no matter how you choose to do it.
Thank you for sharing your outdoor post this week on The Maple Hill Hop!
“We’re longing for a simple life…but really what we want is an easy life.” That so resonated with me. The simple life brings many blessings that the easy life does not, but it is wading through the difficulties that reveals that to us. We have just moved to the city from the country and life has changed drastically for us. I was surprised and pleased with your last suggestion for the simple life – connecting with neighbors. I am looking forward to God’s leading in that area in our new location.
I found your site through the Raising Homemakers link-up and this post really spoke to me. I have been reflecting lately on what a simple life means and what that looks like for me. I appreciate you making the distinction between easy and simple. I feel like I get caught up in the easy side of things, when that really isn’t what it’s about. Life is hard work no matter where we are or what we’re doing, but there are ways to simplify it in the process. Thanks for the lovely reminder!