HELP! I THINK I MIGHT WANT TO LEAD A SIMPLE LIFE;
"What are you up to today?" my flatmate, Josh, politely asked me this morning, as he waited for the kettle to boil.
"Ah, well, you know," I replied, "I have a dissertation meeting in like 20 minutes. I'll probably watch a film for class this afternoon. Pool society later."
"That's alright for some." Josh said.
"Yeah, well, simple minds lead simple lives," I quipped.
I don't necessary have a simple mind, but I think I want a simple life.
I know a girl who I think is incredibly simple. I don't interact with that many simple people. This girl, she is nice enough, I suppose. There's nothing inherently wrong with her, other than how shockingly uninteresting she is. She studies eight hours a day. She bakes cakes and drinks tea. She speaks with her family daily. She is always counting calories. She keeps to a schedule. I judge this girl. Let's call her Georgia. So I sit on my high horse, and I look at Georgia, with her collection of decorative mugs, and her early morning alarms, and I judge her. I deem her boring. I deem her simple. But I've been giving it a bit of thought, and you know, I reckon miss Georgia and her simplistic ways might just be on to something.
In fall of 2011, things were not going great for me (dumped, unemployed, anxious, lonely). I turned to rigid structure in order to pick myself back up; strictly awake at 8AM, breakfast, shower and library-bound [for university study or just to surf the net somewhere bright and friendly] by 9:30. Things were kept clean and organised. Meals were home-cooked. Social outings were planned in advance. I took control of the things I could, and slowly and surely, I felt better. And then: over the past year, my structure has fallen away. I never exercise anymore. I eat ready-meals, takeaway and "snacks" more often than anything else. I sleep haphazardly. My kitchen and bedroom are a mess. My calendar is empty. My tasks are left unfinished with increasing frequency. It's my last year at university. The future is looming, but no more certain. I don't know what city, or even what country I will be living in. I don't know what I'll be doing with my life. I don't know who I'll be with. It's scary!
My resolve this winter is to spend these long Scottish nights living a simple life. I resolve to be awake and alert for the morning sunshine. I resolve to eat as many vegetables as possible. I resolve to be active. I resolve to be honest. I resolve to behave. And it's a win-win. If I succeed, I feel accomplished (without, let's be serious, accomplishing a single thing); if I fail, I'll have something new and exciting to complain about!