"The Simple Life"

June 2, 2010

 

“The Simple Life”

 

Life is anything but simple!  Life can become so complex.  Our schedules seem to fill with more stuff than we can ever get done.  Even when we are free from work we tend schedule our free time.  There seems to be so many choices that even our down time has become a chore as we seek to select from so many things we can do.  We have become masters at complexity.  More has become the norm not the exception.  One of the fastest growing businesses in the United States is storage.  We no longer possess our possessions they have come to possess us.  There just doesn’t seem to be much about our living that is simple.  We sort of just get lost in the complexity of living and sorting through all the stuff.  The stress of choosing alone from so much can be overwhelming.  When I played basketball you had two choices related to the shoe you could buy to play in.  You could buy adidas or converse.  I was an adidas man.  Now you need to know what kind of surface you will be playing on, do you want low tops, mid tops, or high tops.  What color would you like?  Now you can choose from 30 brands each with their own unique choices related to the sport.  Even buying a basketball shoe has become more complex than it has to be.

 

I was in Plainview a few weeks ago staying with friends on a functioning farm.  While I was there time and life just seemed to move into slow motion.  I saw the sky, the clouds, I felt the wind, I smelled the seed, the plants, the flowers, I took time to be visit with people around a circle for hours.  The food seemed to taste better.  The schedule just seemed to work differently there.  The schedule seemed to value people and have a certain respect for nature, life, neighbor, and community.  Sometimes I get weary of busyness.  I look at what I do and I wonder about the necessity of some of it.  Simplicity is a choice.  Grounded in a sense of value for God, family, people, friends, church, I am beginning to realize my own need for a simpler life.  Will I have the courage to let go of some things?  I don’t know.  I am still reflecting and sorting it out in my heart and head.  I long for silence, for God, for family, for friends, for a slower and more intentional pace.  Maybe I can have a more simple life.  I guess that really depends on me and the choices I am willing to make. 

 

I will see you on the road,

 

Travis