Let’s simplify our lives as moms. Deep in our hearts, we hear a small voice beckoning us to slow down and let go of the madness. Usually we ignore it, but I think it’s high time we pay attention. We can do this. Learning to live more simply means learning to let go of things, activities and even relationships which are making life too muddy. It means setting priorities for our lives and our days and living like we mean it.
Simplicity occurs on two levels. First, there is an inward simplicity which occurs in our hearts. In this inner simplicity, we do some soul searching to figure out what we purpose to do on this earth the short time we’re here. It means establishing real goals and focusing on them. The second form is external simplicity which means putting feet onto what our hearts have decided. Here, we remove activities and things which are preventing us from living our priorities. External simplicity means going into our closets and giving clothes away so we have less to wash. Maybe it means switching jobs so that we have more time with our kids, or cutting our kids’ extracurricular activities in half so they can come home and play board games in the afternoons. The working out of it is different for each one of us.
I propose that we have at it. I am going to grab my calendar and a pen and start deleting things which are stressing me. Then I’m going to start getting rid of stuff. Yikes. This feels scary. There’s that fear again telling me that my kids and I really need the stuff we have and the activities we do. But I’m not going to bite. I’m going to move ahead because I don’t need to be afraid. I suppose the reason that simplicity is a discipline because it requires a bit of back bone. But I have it and I know that you do to.
Happy Mother’s Day!
