Query

Query: 10/24/11

Brandon Neway

From my perspective, simplicity is a virtue, and can be expressed in many ways depending on how you look at it. Sometimes simplicity can be coping with the complexities of life. Many things come up unexpectedly in life, some of which can make your life more complicated. To make your life simpler, you need to learn to “roll with the punches.”

Everyone is going to encounter conflict with other people at some time or another. Dwelling on the problem simply makes you stressed and upset. If we are not able to let it go, we are burdened with feelings of stress, guilt, or anger. Negative emotions such as these detract from simple living. If you learn to accept things for what they are and accept that some things cannot be changed, you are less likely to waste time worrying and obsessing over things that are outside your control.

Here is a short skit to introduce the query.

This week’s query is: What things get in your way of simple living?

Simplicity

Reading the article from www.wisdomcommons.org really made me think about how simplicity could affect the world. From my perspective, simplicity is a virtue, and can be expressed in many ways depending on how you would like to look at it. For some it could mean being frugal. For some it could mean focusing more on needs, rather than wants. For me, simplicity is opening up and finding happiness in little things. If everybody viewed simplicity with their own definition of it and lived up to what they believed, the world would be a lot different.

            One way to lead a simpler life is to have less material things. If everyone lived like that then people would be a lot less busy. People would be more occupied with nature and would spend a lot of time outdoors. People would also be more occupied socially, through face-to-face conversation, rather than having your relationships over texting or video chat. Another way to lead a simpler life is to grow your own food. Why travel to the food store and spend a bunch of time deciding between foods, and what’s on sale, when you can just walk outside and pick what’s ready to eat. It’s much simpler because not all foods grow at the same time so it limits your options to a few foods. Whatever is available is what you eat.

            These are just a few ways to live a simpler life. Although the transition to a simpler life would involve an adjustment period, in the long run it would be a much easier and more relaxing lifestyle. Many people who have sacrificed things to make their life simpler can all tell you how much easier it is to go through life with less. So if you're looking to remove stress from your life, then you should reevaluate your priorities and simplify your life.