The Value of Living Simply

By Gordon Rosenberg

Most people are very busy. This may be especially so in western culture. But I doubt if you could go anywhere on this planet now and see a predominant culture that isn’t too busy. It’s just the way things have become. Yet, life doesn’t have to be lived this way. There was a time on this planet when people were more relaxed, when they weren’t always in a hurry. Then, life sped up. People decided there was a lot to do and they should be doing it. Now, it seems as if you must be busy to be okay.

Why is it this way? Perhaps, it’s partly because people don’t value themselves. They don’t value the little things they have to offer. They think they must be very busy to be justified. Look around you. You’ll see this going on everything. People are running all about doing things – just to be busy. Very little thought is going into why we do these things. It’s mostly a case of just doing for the sake of doing.

In my view of reality, there’s no reason for all this activity. It’s possible to do one’s life more leisurely. It’s possible to not be busy at anything – and still be a valuable person. Why is it that people need to be defined by their work? Do you do this –or- do you do that? What’s so good about work, in the commonest sense? I see a place where work isn’t the main issue; where one’s contributions to the race through one’s deeds is the main thing. Is it impossible for us to attain such a place in today’s world? I don’t think so. Yes, it can be difficult. There’s just not much support for being who you are – unless you do it in connection with the prevailing culture.

But some people don’t listen to prevailing opinion. They find it possible to do what they know they must, without compromising their values. They do as they know they must, without worrying about the opinions of those around them. This isn’t easy. It takes a real commitment to one’s innermost inspiration. It takes giving up fear and doing what you know you need to be doing. It takes not holding on to false perceptions about yourself. And it takes having the courage to face objections.

None of this is easy. It really never was. But some people do it anyway. The choice is ours. Be busy or be more relaxed. Live a life worth living, or don’t. Be whoever we are, either in the context of those around us, or don’t worry at all about them and be true to ourselves. I say, be true to oneself, for there’s really no other way to live and be fulfilled at the same time.