Monday, August 03, 2009

Simplify, simplify.

One of the first online friends I ever met in person was author Ann Kroeker. She wrote the book The Contemplative Mom, and if you are a mom longing to find more time with God and haven't read it, I recommend it.

Well, I follow Ann on Twitter and found out she has a new book out this month! It's called Not So Fast, and it looks to be a fabulous book. You can find out more about it here on Ann's book blog.

Naturally, the little writer in me said "Hey! Blog about this!" So here I am, my few but faithful readers, to talk about slowing down.

This is actually funny, because last night I was thinking it's time to kick up the workouts a notch; all the ice cream and vacation eating has settled where I'd rather it not be. But I don't think that's what people mean by slowing down and taking time out and simplifying life . . . do you?

The first thing that came to mind was the quotation I used as the title for this post: "Simplify, simplify." Do you know where it comes from? Dr. James Saucerman. OK, not really (he was my grad school American Transcendentalism professor at NWMSU, in case you wondered who he is!). Really it's from Henry David Thoreau's Walden. I'm not recommending we all sell everything and live in the woods in a cabin we built for $28.12 1/2, but the principle is still a valid one. Why else would we all have "declutter" and "recycle" and "donate" in our blog posts this year, in a less-than-sterling (pun intended) economy?

Begin another month, begin a new habit, break an old habit, make a new resolution. It's all good. Just don't beat yourself up about it if you miss a day, like I tend to do.

Here are a couple of resources for you:

Additionally, on Twitter through my friend Carmyn I found a challenge from author Laurie H. Anderson to write fifteen minutes a day. Today's post fulfilled today's 15 minutes and then some! :)

3 comments:

Ann Kroeker said...

Love it! "Simplify, simplify." I hope families can keep that in mind this fall, when they are faced with all the back-to-school activities and sign-ups.

And what a good point--that people are still decluttering, recycling and donating in an economy that one might expect people to be holding on, even clinging, to what they've got.

Thanks for your support--I'm so glad the Lord caused our paths to cross all those years ago!

Teri Lynne Underwood said...

Great post, Pattie. I yearn for a simpler life b
t seem to lack the discipline to get there.

Matt Jabs said...

Thanks for the link Pattie...

Simplifying has been one of the biggest blessings for me and my wife. It always seems like you're "sacrificing" at first, but in reality... it is a blessing to get back to the basics!

Cheers.