What is it that draws me to simple living so much? I’ve been pondering this question for a while now. I know God has been speaking to me about it, and I am taking small steps towards it. But why? Why are so many more people, not just me, wanting to go back to a simple life?

Our life has become so complicated. With freedom and technology has come a huge complicated lifestyle. I enjoy reading other blogs where people have chosen a more simple lifestyle. They have gone against what the modern world is saying, and have almost stepped back in time.

This past week I have been looking around me at the large house we are renting. It is just FULL to the brim of stuff. I look around me and wonder what I am going to do with it all. I know that I have to be ruthless. I do not want our new house to be full and cluttered. I want it to be simple. I want to be able to have it tidy and clean in a short time - not spend hours every week shifting things around. It is only a small three bedroom, one bathroom house, and I don’t want it stuffed full of STUFF!

Over the years my dh traveled a lot, and sometimes we were blessed to be able to go with him on short trips. During these trips, we would stay at furnished apartments. I was always amazed at how quickly I got the “housework” done at these places because there was no clutter and extra things lying around. The kitchen had the basics, and they were enough. Then I would come back to our own home and think - Oh my! Do I need 4 frying pans? Do I need 10 pairs of scissors? (er, yes, they were always going missing, so I’d just buy another one….!) How many wooden spoons do I really need?

Think about all our time saving appliances, like the dishwasher. After I got a dishwasher I found that I didn’t have enough dishes, because after all, we should only run the dishwasher when it is full. Instead of washing the lunch dishes and using them again for dinner, they would sit in the dishwasher… waiting…. The same with mugs. We don’t very often use more than 6 mugs at one time - but I need more than that, because as soon as they are used once, they go in the dishwasher and sit there until it is full. The dishwasher saves us time…. but I find most of the ones I have had, I had to practically wash the dishes before I put them in, or else they wouldn’t get clean.

This post isn’t very coherent, I’m afraid. I am just writing down my thoughts as they are madly going around and around in my head! The thing is, I long for a simple life. A life that is uncluttered by things - be they tangible or intangible. When I have so many things that I feel pressured to do, I can’t spend that time with my children during the day as I would like to. I find myself telling them more and more often that I will come in a minute to play with them, or that I’ll listen to what they are trying to tell me in a minute. I want to change. I need to change.