It's now been 4 months since returning from our sabbatical in Bulgaria. This has been a period of readjustment and reevaluation of our lives. On the face of it we have slipped back into many of our old routines: work, school, etc., but scratch a little under that surface impression and there is clear evidence of a whole mindset change. Trying to define this change has been a bit elusive, but I recently stumbled across a book, and then an amazing website about 'Voluntary Simplicity' and they have helped me sum up where I think we're at right now.
Voluntary simplicity is all about simplifying your lifestyle (though there are probably as many different versions of it as there are people). On the face of it it's all about living your life with less - which can make it sound like deprivation - but it's not. It's more about defining and then balancing your 'needs' against your 'wants'. Getting rid of the clutter in our lives is much more than just material things too - it encompasses other spheres such as emotional clutter.
Anyhow, others have already put this much more eloquently than I have. I definitely recommend checking out this voluntary simplicity website and this inspiring suggestion for a new year's resolution.
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