Understanding Simplicity for me

As I age, which by the way I find wonderful, it seems that the depth of my understanding regarding who I am, becomes more defined, less rebellious, more at peace with the answers. Its a good feeling. I feel in the prime of my life, no hindrances due to health issues, I finally know why I do certain things I do, have the desire to work on the areas that need work and let the things I feel good about within myself, blossom. I am not afraid to admit I don't do everything perfect, or have faults, everyone sees them clearly anyway. I often laugh about the people who spend a great deal of energy trying to keep aspects of their life quiet, maybe the wayward child, the less than perfect marriage, the questions they have about God...because of their inability to admit life is less than perfect, friends, family members and acquaintances gossip about them, seeking answers, summations of the situation where facts remain tied up behind closed lips. It has proven over and over that when one speaks in honesty about the less than perfect in their life, compassion fills the place where gossip can flourish. I myself have joined in the gossip wagon as it went by, laughing at someone's fruitless attempt to cover up some rather obvious less than perfect situation. Where if another person is in just about the same situation and shares the sorrow of the matter, (no, not shouting from the mountain top) but shares with friends and family and perhaps asks for prayer regarding the matter, well then you feel for them and will most likely defend them when someone attempts to bring the situation down to a gossip level.
In this time of my life, I see the need to become a more sincere person, more giving, more filled with compassion. I understand more anyway. Life experience has taught me a lot about sorrow, pain, love, joy, loss and so many more situations that create in us the opportunity to sympathize, to show earnest compassion. Now, please don't get me wrong, I have not reaches enlightenment and am now like Mary Poppins, Practically Perfect in Every Way ! I still get ticked off by ignorance, by apathy, and by manipulators, to name a few pet peeves. I have a hard time showing compassion to abusers and the ruthless in the world.
The road this morning is a bit off track from the subject, but is about to head back now. In a way, understanding yourself is the only way you can comfortably embrace living simply and be content with it. If you are trying to impress people by living simply, you are not living with honesty and at some point it will become more chore than passion. You might live simply because you have no money, that's sort of an imposed simplicity. That sort of simple living can be a cover up, making you feel better for not having more. Make it look like its all of a choice. I think to some degree we had a bit of that mentality in our early years. Or, you could have no money by choice and then simple living is more sincere, which no doubt took some serious understanding on your part of who you are and what you value in order to pass up the notion that we are measured by what we own. You can also live in simplicity because you are lazy and this cutsie concept of simple living makes you look more noble than lazy, so it can be a label to hide behind. In looking at this, I think for me, there have been pieces of all those scenarios through the journey. Now, simple living has metamorphisized into something so much deeper, more spiritual, more inner work type thing. Growing more in tune that having lots of stuff around me is more about feeding moments of loneliness or pain. Having less around is akin to finding the total peace of sitting in silence, not afraid of it, not afraid of facing the inner me. Understanding that the pretties around us do not define us as much as they take attention away from us, the "stuff" is what people focus on when they enter our homes. Shopping is like eating, so often an escape. Buying without thinking, eating without thinking. Mindless moment of escape. Once again I am assuming you are all reading between the lines here and I am talking about balance. "Stuff" refers to just that, the things we buy and later donate to Goodwill, or shake our heads wondering where we were mentally when we bought it, or feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of whatever it is we have started collecting. Do you really NEED 24 of one thing ? Pretty things are nice to have around, but not when they become the focal point of who we are. Living simply is about always having clear view of why you are here, what counts in life, what you want to define you. Do you really want to be known in life for your salt and pepper set collection, or would you rather be known for spending time and energy helping others. What is the most pronounced thing about you ? Your collection of antiques ? Do your children describe you as a mom that likes to shop, or do they think right off the bat, "my mom likes to spend time with us" ? I think often about what will I leave my children ? A house full of "stuff" that they will have to spend weeks and weeks weeding through when I die, or a few wonderful treasures that they can hold and remember not the thing, but remember who I was. I can bet they don't want to have to go through 36 doilies, 29 aprons, 54 tea towels. But they will want to go through pictures of things we did together. Sitting in Starbucks, paying that $4 for a coffee which is secondary to the time we lingered there, solving world problems and talking for hours about the real things in our lives or about some wonderful book we have all read. I might complain about the $4 price tag on the coffee at times, but its nothing compared to the fabrics in my stash that I have given away because I never used it. Simple living is all about simply understanding the real values in life. For me, it means that we are willing to live "greener" than some. I value the delicate nature of the earth and want to tread as lightly as I can. We hike and backpack and see first hand the destruction caused by apathy and arrogant mindset that the "world will be fine".
It's time for my morning walk. Beside me, my cup of warm water and lemon juice is about empty, signaling a time to put my shoes on, take camera in hand and head out the door. The sun is shining in a bright blue clear sky. A perfect morning.