The Art of Simplifying Your Life

Blog Autor: Emilia Wheaton
Blog Editor: Kristen Kennedy Smith

Less than a year ago, I resettled back to life in the United States after a three year hiatus in South America then Southeast Asia. I had accepted a volunteer opportunity with the Peace Corps--the chance to live and work in a rural Peruvian Andean community. When I left the US the summer after graduating from college, I anticipated a massive, earth shattering adjustment as I learned how to live without my American comforts: brunch on the weekends with friends, hot yoga with my favorite instructor, treating myself to a bath bomb and a glass of champagne (or really just even a hot shower), mornings spent perusing the shelves of the local bookstore, a cone of Ben and Jerry’s on a humid Vermont summer day. With all the excitement for my new adventure and lifestyle, I dreaded giving up the habits and items that made me feel comfortable and even greatly influenced my happiness (as I’d thought…)

Fast forward four years, and I now long for my days in Peru as a volunteer. Life was simple. Early mornings held plenty of time for a wake-up yoga flow and a hot cup of coffee (beans I’d roasted and ground myself). I changed from my pajamas into one of three or four outfits I rotated between and slipped on the same pair of sandals I wore every day. My possessions were minimal; I traded books with other volunteers in place of purchasing new copies, I went through about two bottles of shampoo and conditioner in two years (and zero bath bombs) only bathing once per week with lukewarm water I poured over my head from a plastic cup. Before the sun had fully stretched its morning rays over the community, my host family and I gathered grass to feed the guinea pigs and rabbits, stoked the wood burning stove to life, and had a pot of oatmeal rolling to a boil. Gathering around the wooden table in the thatched roof, dirt floor kitchen was as close as I was getting to Sunday brunch with the gals. And it was perfect. It’s not to say I didn’t wish sometimes that the oatmeal I ate five times per week weren’t eggs benedict with a mimosa on the side, but I came to accept the simplicity of my life, of their lives, and truly became accustomed to this bucolic lifestyle. Everything was simple and slow, noises were natural and soft, we moved without haste through our days and took it all in as we went. 

I believe that the changes and challenges of our lives serve to teach us lessons, to allow us time to practice the new behaviors and traits we wish to see in ourselves. It has been the challenge of my current chapter to duplicate the sense of inner peace that came so easily in Peru back her in the US. As mellow and laid-back was the lifestyle in Peru, I am finding the American lifestyle oppositely and equally hectic and frantic. When I stepped off the plane in the US last year, I returned with different lenses over my eyes and a reduced tolerance to the stimulus of the environment. My first challenge was to accept reality and not to resent it, not to constantly wish I were back in the place I had left, but to acknowledge the differences of then and now. I am now focusing on incorporating the simplistic aspects of my Peruvian life that had allowed me to focus on my self-development, inner peace and present-mindedness. 

What are those simplistic aspects, exactly? And how do I modify them for my current lifestyle? 

1. Do I need to buy this? Consumerism is astounding to me. Really. Walking into big stores cues anxiety as I feel pulled in different directions to buy this product or that. Marketers really know what they’re doing and know how to convince us we want or even NEED something. And I’m totally susceptible to their persuasion. Initially, when I returned to the States completely broke off a volunteer’s meager compensation, it was a matter of “can I afford this?” which made the shopping game pretty easy, because the answer was almost always “no, you absolutely cannot.” But now that I’m a bit more financially secure, I usually can find a way to afford little things here and there. So now, my question is: “if I were moving across the country tomorrow, would I carefully pack this for the journey or would I debate throwing it away or feel it was a nuisance to take along with me?” Essentially, do I really need this? Will this item bring me joy or will it just clutter up the space in my life I am trying to simplify?

 

1. Is this worth my mental/emotional energy? Just like choosing whether or not to buy an adorable throw pillow from a trendy boutique, we can choose how we respond to what’s going on around us. I’m confronted with these options every day; a driver cuts me off while driving, do I yell to their deaf ears and wave my middle finger or do I choose to smile, maybe turn up the tunes in my car and sing away some minor frustration? Granted, we can’t control our impulses 100% of the time, but I find that when I am more careful in selecting my responses, my relationships are more harmonious, my mood is lighter and life is just simpler.
   
   
   
2. Am I making good use of my time? Right now, I’m trying out the 8-5 lifestyle on for size. I’m not sure it fits me just right but it’s what I’ve got for the moment and it’s how I’m getting by while I concoct my plans for the future. Often, I resent this schedule because it means only having about four hours every day in the evenings to squeeze in chores, walking my dog, self-care, exercise, keeping in touch with friends, hobbies, and quality time to spend with my partner. Gone are the days of slow and easy mornings blending into meaningful work alongside community partners and wrapping up the day doing chores outside with my family, with plenty of time in between to call up a friend and read a chapter or two of a good book. These days, I have to optimize my time with the goal of making it more meaningful and intentional. What are some ways you can squeeze in some tasks in down time throughout the day so that once you’re home you can take a deep breath in and feel some relief?
   
   
   
3. What can I cut out of my days to create more time? This just boils down to discovering what is truly important to me. I have cut my time on social media down to fractions of what it once was, instead texting a loved one when I realize my hand is subconsciously drifting toward my phone. That interaction between a loved one has proven more fulfilling than scrolling aimlessly through Instagram. At work, I am given a full hour lunch break, which I could spend eating and lazing around the office, but I choose to squeeze in a little bit of exercise and take a walk around the block or will bring my yoga mat to do a quick flow in my office. Maybe this counteracts the idea of simplicity, cramming activities into every second of spare time, but this practice serves to make me feel more balanced, more accomplished, so when a moment of peace does present itself I can fully bask in it rather than focusing on the long list of tiny chores I set for myself.
   
   
   
4. How can I be more present minded? When I feel life becoming hectic and I sense myself becoming frenzied and upset, I get ahead of myself and often let this sensation persist throughout the day. If I’m super unconscious of it, it becomes my base-state for days at a time until I realize “yikes, you are super grumpy.” and then try to snap out of it. However, it’s harder to snap out of a multi-day slump than to catch myself in the moment and change my focus to what is happening here and now. Maybe I’m driving home after work and I’m in a rush to grab some veggies for dinner, racing to make it home with enough daylight left to take the dog (who has been bored to death on the couch all day) to the park so we can both let off some steam. Instead of letting myself enter a frenzy, I can choose to simply focus on what is going on around me. Watch the drivers in the neighboring cars, admire the way the light is hitting the Santa Catalina Mountains, listen intently to each poetic word Trevor Hall sings just for my own listening ears. Living more presently clears worry and hurry from my mind, simplifies my mind, and allows me to feel more relaxed.

These techniques are imperative for me to stay not only sane but happy, productive and grateful for my life. Keeping it simple allows me to level up: to walk onward with a clear head, to push aside unwelcome stimuli and to focus on who and where I want to be. Keep it simple, folks.

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