Reflections on Simplicity

Part of the reason and motivation for our trip is to take a look at our lives from the outside. Some call it a sabbatical, or retreat, but I think it’s more like a personal evaluation. Outside of our normal routines and grind, there is more mind space to think about life.

I just finished reading a book which I felt did a really good job of summarizing and punctuating striving for a simple and rewarding lifestyle. In the last few years, I have aimed to choose a simple life as a goal and stumbled upon this book. Below is a modified excerpt from Voluntary Simplicity, by Duane Elgin. It’s a rough definition of the values of Voluntary Simplicity and how it looks in everyday life.

• Relational: To invest the time and energy freed by up simpler living activities with our spouse, children and friends (walking, making music together, sharing a meal, camping etc) or volunteering to help others, or getting involved in civic affairs to improve the life of the community.
• Personal Development: To work on developing the full spectrum of our potential: physical (running, biking, hiking etc), emotional (the skills of intimacy and sharing feelings in important relationships), mental (engaging in lifelong learning by reading, taking classes, etc) and spiritual (learning to move through life with a quiet mind and compassionate heart).
• Aware: To feel an intimate connection with the earth and a reverential concern for nature. In knowing that the ecology of the earth is part of our extended body, people tend to act in ways that express great care for its well being.
• Compassionate: To feel a compassionate concern for the world’s poor; a simpler life fosters a sense of kinship with people around the world and thus a concern for social justice and equity in the use of the world's resources
• Content: To lower overall level of personal consumption - Buy less clothing (with more attention to what is functional, durable, aesthetic and less concern with passing fads, fashions and seasonal styles), buy less jewelry and other forms of personal ornamentation, buy fewer cosmetic products and observer holidays in a less commercialized manner.
• Careful: To alter patterns of consumption in favor of products that are durable, easy to repair, non polluting in their manufacture and use, energy efficient, functional and aesthetic.
• Healthy: To shift our diet away from highly processed foods, meat, and sugar, toward foods that are more natural, healthy, simple and appropriate for sustaining the inhabitants of a small planet.
• Minimal: To reduce undue clutter and complexity in their personal lives by giving aways or selling those possessions that are seldom used and could be used productivity by others (clothing, books, furniture, appliances, tools etc
• Ethical: To use any consumption politically by boycotting goods and services of companies whose actions or policies considered unethical.
• Responsible: To recycle metal, glass and paper, to cut back on consumption of items that are wasteful and non renewable resources.
• Contribution: To pursue a livelihood that directly contributes to the well being of the world and enables a person to use more fully his or her creative capacities in ways that fulfilling
• Capable: To develop personal skills that contribute to greater self reliance and reduce dependence upon experts to handle life’s ordinary demands (for example basic carpentry, plumbing, appliance repairs, gardening,crafts, etc)
• Present: To prefer smaller scale more human sized living and working environments that foster a sense of community face to face contact and mutual caring
• Real: To appreciate the simplicity of nonverbal forms of communication the eloquence of silence, hugging, touching and the language of the eyes
• Organic: To participate in holistic health care practices that emphasize preventative medicine and healing powers of the body when assisted by the mind
• Involved: To be involved with compassionate causes such as protecting rainforest and saving animals from extinction and to use nonviolent means in our efforts
• Conscious: To change transportation modes in favor of public transit, carpooling, smaller and more fuel efficient autos, living closer to work, riding a bike and walking