This is a quote from Confucius that has me asking lots of questions. Is life really simple? Is it us humans that just make it complicated? Do we overthink everything? Do we have dreams or expectations that are just too much? What makes life simple and what makes it complicated?
Do we worry so much about everything, when really we should just be happy with our lives the way they are? It seems we are always striving to do better. We want a bigger house, a newer car, the latest phone. These are all materialistic things that take money, which then means we need a bigger income and better job.
Are we also striving for more happiness? Do these materialistic things make us happier or is it a case of the more we get the more we want? Are we trying to keep up with the Joneses? (Who are these Joneses?) What will make us truly happy? Is it having lots of friends and family? Is it having lots of fun experiences? Are we trying to have it all, the materialistic things, the people around us and the amazing life experiences?
What complicates our lives? Is it not getting what we want? Why don’t we get what we want? Do we know what we want and why we want it?
Imagine you want to lose weight (Ha! I know it’s not time for a New Year’s resolution) Then why don’t you lose weight? We all know that to lose weight we need to eat less and exercise more. So why don’t we just do it? Why do we even want to lose weight in the first place? Is it to be fit and healthy? Is it because we want to look like Mrs Jones when she wears her size 8 red dress? What makes losing weight so complicated?
If you could choose between a complex or simple life, which would you choose? So maybe stop stressing and worrying about things you can’t change, be happier and more grateful for the more simple things in life that we do have. For the things that you want to change, maybe find a determination to make those changes by creating small habits daily that will become larger habits over time, but don’t stress about them by looking at the long goals.
I’m no expert and I certainly don’t have all the answers but with every day, I am aiming for a simpler life, with less complications.
Women's Shed Branxton 