Over the last week my wife and I have been living out of a truck, then a backpack, then a truck again. The time spent backpacking we spent no money. We ate food we had already bought, and burned fuel we had from before to cook the food. True, we paid for these things earlier and it cost us money to get to this place where we backpacked, but on those days living out of our packs we spent no money. Coincidently, those were the days of the last week when I enjoyed life the most.
I start off thinking about our old apartment filled to capacity with all the stuff that also later filled a storage unit. I think about myself and Em working so hard to keep up with bills, rent, phones, internet, going out to eat, new stuff we needed or thought we needed, credit card interest, storage fees, college loans… all the things to pay for.
We have bills because of the life we live. We eat, rent, go to the doctor, have insurance on expensive items and ourselves. We buy stuff and subsequently have to pay for a place to keep all our stuff and in some cases, cases for our stuff. We live expensive lives. And so we work. Sometimes we consume so much and work so much that we are trapped in a cycle (or cage if you will).
To me LIVE SIMPLY is meaning more and more, reduction in consumption/expenses equals a reduction in work necessary to sustain life style. The result is more free time. Of all the time I spend, working, sleeping, doing taxes, eating, whatever, I value my free time the most.
Free time is the time I take the most pictures. The time I laugh the most. The time I see and do new things. I climb, hike, love, cook, swim, bike, make music, draw, journal, slackline, travel, and create more in my free time. This is the time when I am most happy. This is when I am FREE to live.
Of course, as with everything, there is a balance. At the moment of this writing I am coming off a period of my life where I worked much more than I had free time. I currently only have free time. Ideally I will be able to work and consume and also have ample free time. All three of these things are necessary. Live Simply is a command to strive for a better balance between them.
Strive to spend less, work less, have less. Enjoy more time. Live Simply.
I did purchase today my first pair of Neoprene (wetsuit material) socks for $22 as well as other supplies to lower myself on a rope hundreds of feet down cold, wet, dirty canyons so naturally I am open to other interpretations of Live Simply as well.
Cheers!
Kevin
Hey guys, Katherine here. I am enjoying the posts that you have left here. It is amazing to follow along and experience what you guys are experiencing, and to hear the deeper thoughts that go along with them.
ReplyDeleteWhatever you do, do it on purpose.
To live simply, I feel is to understand what your needs are, and to meet those at their basic level. In a matter that you are fulfilled, yet not left for wanting. For example, I need about 3 pairs of pants. One or two more is nice, but 5 more is frivolous. Any less, it becomes a nuisance to get through the week. I know this becuase I have lived without, and understand exactly how many pants I need, personally, to be a content little girl.
I think it's important for each of us to understand for ourselves truly, how much of each thing we actually need in order to feel content. (not left for wanting) Becuase in our society it IS very easy to get distracted into wanting things, without actually understanding if they will indeed make us sustainably happier.
In the backcountry the temptation and the distractions and the "tests" of self will to adhere to our values is not there. The option to go down the street and buy a canoe and take off for the river is not an option.There are no canoe stores. Therefore you don't have to weigh your options of whether it is a good idea to spend your savings on a canoe, and forgoe higher education.
And so to live simply,and sustainably in conjunction with the societal life, we must have a deeper understanding of ourselves and what it is that we, as individuals, truly need and value. Then, we can live accordingly in a simpler manner. For we have internally eliminated the option of buying that canoe in knowing what are deeper values are, rather than eliminating the option by removing the canoe store. In knowing ourselves, it makes us immune to the temptations of society.
For it is in simplicity that we find fulfillment and content.
Katherine, you are a wise and amazing woman. I feel honored to know you. -E
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