Despite living in the relatively affluent Northwest Suburbs of Chicago, there are still homeless people living in our community. I saw one on my way to work this morning and it got me thinking about the more, more, more culture that we live in. No one ever believes that they have enough money, a big enough house, an expensive enough car. However, we live in a culture where we have more money and more experiences that almost any culture on earth so the facts about what we really have, don’t match up with our group perception.
I have to admit that there are days when I believe my life would be perfect if I had a better job, more money, etc. etc. However, as I passed that homeless gentleman this morning, it got me thinking that I really do have enough. My basic needs are met and then some: I have beautiful house that provides shelter, we always have food in the fridge, I have clothes to wear, I have a wonderful family, and a great dog.
Looking at the reality of my life, I realized that I’ve bought into the culture myth that climbing the corporate ladder and getting a better job with more status is the be all and end all. Unfortunately, that type of success comes at a price because we are all given but one life to live and and time is not an expandable substance so the more time you spend at work, the less time you have to spend on something else. Despite the undeniable truth that more work doesn’t equal more happiness, our culture values upper mobility and it seems that people who deliberately choose to step back and pursue balance instead of career success are not always appreciated.
I’ve been working through the exercises in Waverly Fitzgerald’s Slow Time and it has opened my eyes to a different way of living. Every time there is a question about how I will spend my time, I remind myself that this is my only life and I ask myself if this is really the best way for me to spend my life. I remind myself that life is a series of trade offs and the more time that I spend at work, the less time there is to spend taking my kids to cool places or spending time enjoying the great people they’ve become. More time at work means less time to write. More time at work means less time for the things that are really important to me.My life has changed a lot since I started asking reminding myself that this is my one and only life. I’ve started exercising more, seeing a chiropractor to work out the kinks in my back, and spending time cooking real food instead of eating the cardboard junk you buy at the drive through.
There’s no way that I could even begin to claim that I’m perfect and there are still days when I’m running late because I got sucked into work, but overall my life is a little more balanced and I’m a lot more blissful. So here’s to the bliss of enough.
Cairn by Cairn 