Do you need to send this letter too?
Joshua…Another home run with this post…
Everyone has their own level of consumerism. Me? I choose to support local merchants whenever I have a need – and I am thankful that my needs are not based on what the world has to offer. Much to my teenager’s dismay, we don’t have a giant, flat screen TV…as a matter of fact, my computer is 7 years old and nope, I don’t even have an iPad. I live in a tiny farmhouse built in 1886 and the only real excess I can come up with is my passion for kitchen tools. I have given up alot…first out of necessity (since I can no longer work outside the home, our income was instantly cut in half)…and since, out of desire. No regrets. What I DO have? Peace of mind, less stress, less stuff to take care of, more focus and more quality time with my family. My best reward? I have gotten to spend an enormous amount of time with my teenage son – doing not only fun things, but I get to also homeschool with him, something he’s wanted his whole life. Our already close bond has become even closer and although I, like many parents, am not excited about him going away to college in the fall, I am excited that I have been able to have the last 3 years with him in a way I was unable to do in the past. Our family has been so blessed by this.
I had my “ah ha” moment, must like Joshua’s, a few years ago when I got sick. Since then, the hours per day that I have that are “functional” are much less than someone without health challenges. Everyone only has 24 hours a day and we all need to choose how to spend them, but now I have less “functional” hours, so I have to be very choosy as to how to spend them. Believe it or not, it is one of the best blessings that has come out of my health challenges.
Yea, I’m looking at the silver lining on that cloud.
