A little wisdom from the country....

In one of my many treks to our new library, I came across this. Having grown up in the "country" (at least by California standards), many of the things mentioned seemed like something my grandparents would have said. I've always felt the "country" in my genes: I'm not a city lover, I need to have space around me, and I can't drive in San Francisco. Certainly, as I've gotten older, I've learned to appreciate what the "city" has to offer.

But this book spoke to me (anyone else ever had that happen?). Bob has always joked about "living off the fat of the land" (yeah, right, raised-in-Oakland man), but we certainly have done our share of vegetable gardens, etc. I think what made so much sense about the wisdom of this book, what made me run over to the local B&N and buy it, was the simple life it addressed.

There's that saying, "Cluttered house, cluttered mind". For me, it certainly was true. Now that the latter part has been taken care of, I'm working on the first part. To be honest, too much stuff makes me stressed out. It may be futile at this point in my life, but I just like an organized space. I like to have around me the things I truly love and don't see the need for much else. So I've been getting rid of, reusing, thrifting a lot of the stuff around my house ("stuff" is my blog friendly word for it). Maybe part of it is the parents I have: they like their stuff, their stuff is expensive, and they like to accumulate more stuff. I've never really understood that mentality, but growing up I have to say I bought into it, as I didn't know anything else.

So, I have a challenge for you all. This month, as a beginning to what I hope will become a habit, I am really going to try not to buy more "stuff". This isn't just about using what I have; it's also about appreciating a way of life that seems to be disappearing. I used to be able to feel how slow life moved in Visalia when I would visit; now it's become much like everywhere else. I pledge to really slow down, take my time with my WIPs, look at all the things I can DO for MYSELF instead of buying more stuff. I know that others are doing similar things, so I'm hoping that those of you out there will join me. Can you make your own bread? Cleaning supplies? Gifts? Do we really need that extra "whatever"?

Let's find the value in a more simple life, a more grateful life....let's adopt a little "country wisdom"...