A simple beautiful life. Who wouldn’t want one? The words on this plain white T shirt jumped out and tackled my friend Kim and I while at the beach for a reunion with our high school friends.
We had to have it!
And then, we had to buy one for each of our friends on the trip. We wanted them to have it too! Our friends were excited to receive the gift and put it on right away to pose in our final night’s picture. We were all starting to feel the bitter sweet feeling of knowing that our weekend was almost over.
The T Shirt made it home with me, and now I can’t find it. It’s probably stuck somewhere amidst the other white T’s in my son’s closet. He loves his white T Shirt, just a plain T with nothing on it. I have a feeling that my T shirt is in his pile somewhere. Makes for a great metaphor. I feel like things have piled up for me and “what’s most important” often lands at the bottom of the pile, lost, or sandwiched in somewhere.
It’s a good thing that I don’t need the T Shirt to remind me of my 2012 intention to live a more simple and beautiful life.
I have this thought held snug in my brain and I know that it’s just a thought away. I reach for this thought often during the day and ask — is that simple? Beautiful? If it’s not, then I toss it, resist choosing it, or pay it no attention. If I can’t decide, then I use this intention as a filter and make a decision that is aligned with my personal definition of simple and beautiful.
What is simple? Truth be told, I feel far from simple. In fact, my goal of writing a more simple blog and communicating more simply in my life is a tough one for me. My mind is amazingly complex and always pinging with thoughts and ideas. My relationships are deep, kinda complex in that I can’t seem to manage a 5 minute “how are you” call and an hour later I struggle to get off the phone. Defining what I mean by simple will take time. It’s fun to think about and it’s personal. What’s “simple” to me, may not be to you.
Beautiful. What’s that? At first glance, you may think I mean pretty or good looking, but rest assured the word beautiful has much more meaning inside it. It’s about aligning with my core values, what’s important to me, speaking my voice, standing up for what I believe, living with integrity, being able to forgive myself and others, living with Grace.
I have so much to learn now that I’ve embraced these two words. Want to have fun embracing them with me? I dare you to start thinking about how your life is already simple and beautiful. Start in a very simple way by simply looking around, right here and right in the moment you are in. What’s beautiful here in this moment? What are you missing throughout the day because you are simply not looking right in front of you?
Appreciate what’s beautiful about what you have. You are enough. You have enough. A simple and beautiful life calls us to see it!
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
i’m on board! that was the decision i made when I moved! simplier and beautiful…..there is peace there! keep sharing you are a wise women!