I just finished reading a couple of very insightful articles on living simply and enjoying the moment.
The first article I would like to bring up is by Scott H Young. Like Scott, I wish I could be an expert in everything. I have a lot of different interests and aspirations. It can get overwhelming very quickly to have my priorities all over the place. One thing I have to remind myself daily is: I don't have infinite amounts of energy. To remedy this habit of exhaustive-enthusiasm, Scott suggests directing all of your personal energy into a few worthy pursuits instead of trying to do everything at once. He's made a list of "unimportant things" to help him stay on the right track.
I decided to try a list of my own, and it was not easy. At first my list started out as all priority: spouse, school, money, cooking, home, writing, language, etc. It was one really huge, industrious list. One by one, I began pulling things out of the priority list and putting them into the list of "unimportant things", or more appropriately "things I will have time for later". This exercise forced me to consider what is primarily valuable for my life today. As much as I would like to have everything now, it's just simply unrealistic.
The second article can be found at Study Hacks by Cal Newport. The title is: "Are you living well or preparing to live well?" What a great question. I find myself making a lot of choices based on the distant future payback aspect. Going to school, getting married, or buying a house are such choices. But what about the choices we make that effect our day to day lives? How many other long term goals are we spending energy on in addition to the kind just mentioned? Are we doing things that bring us joy every day? Do our goals include eating and sleeping well? Exercising? Cultivating relationships? Having a safe and cozy place to live?
There are a lot of things I want to do with my life. I want to travel, meet people, and write about what I see. I'm not in a position to do those things yet, but I continue to prepare myself for that day in the future. I'm still trying to sort out my long term and short term goals, while remembering to make daily choices that have positive results tomorrow.
Yesterday, I splurged a bit on some inexpensive items that will make my home seem warmer this winter. I brought home a bright red vinyl tablecloth with a pretty herringbone pattern, and a pumpkin spice candle to make the house smell festive. In two days, my family is coming here for dinner, and I hope these simple things will ease my mind just a little about the bareness of our [new] home.
Photograph from NY Public Library
Photograph from NY Public Library
Ahhh. . . Simplicity. You are so on the right track. I have struggled with prioritizing since my days as a young mother. I, too, have a myriad of interests. I resigned a long time ago to the need to narrow them down to a smaller list. My added knack for practicality helped me learn to live with a messy house. I learned to associate a messy house with active children and a part time job--both of which I was thankful for. As long as the house was clean, I could live with strewn toys. And now that I have my life pretty much in order, through the art of simplicity, I still fail to give time to smelling the roses. I'm still working on finding joy in the moment for I am constantly thinking ahead. What better way to be practical?
ReplyDeleteI learn so much from you, Maria. You continue to be my sunshine. Your love of life has always been like medicine for me. You have taught me that it is possible for me to set my worries aside and find joy in life.