Within a week I will be living in a gorgeous studio apartment on the Willamette River. Even more wonderful is the fact that I'm only ten minutes from downtown Portland, my most favorite city in the world.
The challenge. . .and it is not at all negative. . .is that the apartment is a spartan 450 sq. ft. large. An opportunity for me to pare down to the bare essentials. To sort, throw out, give away and minimize all those "things" I consider necessary or even a"part of me". I suspect I'll find that there is not a whole lot of stuff that is absolutely essential. Over the past few years, I have developed a yearning for a simpler life. Have accepted the fact that all the stuff I own. . .owns me. Ties me down. Anchors me to Place and sometimes buries me. Limits my ability to lift up and fly off at a whim.
These times we live in afford us all kinds of challenges/opportunities/crises. Opportunities to stretch out, let go and grow. When we resist, we crack, freeze, zone out and ultimately fight with the flow of life as it should be. A friend of mine recently lost her home to fire while she was away. When she returned home, her initial reaction was shock and grief. But only for a short time. Because she is in the habit of flowing with life, she told me it was only "stuff" and that she had more to be grateful for than not. Her attitude of hope and acceptance inspires me as I look at my piles of stuff and know that I get to CHOOSE what to let go of.
What a blessing. . . .this invitation to simplify my life. I'm already feeling lighter and freer. As if I could take on feathery wings and fly wherever and whenever I please.
2 comments:
Just don't throw out the sketch books and pencils/paints/pens! That would be TOO much! LOL!
yes yes yes!
Post a Comment