March 13, 2007 8:20 AM
The joy of downsizing
My friend Amy, whose musings may be humble, but are consistently very wise, has a must-read piece called Live Well on Less.
When I went on a radical diet and exercise regimen a few years back, I made the choice to value fitness, energy, and well-being over my addiction to food and laziness. When I’d get a craving, I’d ask myself, “Which do you want more? It’s your choice.” In the same way, a person who is a paycheck away from bankruptcy must decide that they value financial freedom over a double-shot latte. You have to want it. You have to catch the vision. That way, the sacrifices required to move toward the goal become part of the game. I can’t explain it, except to say that I’ve never felt deprived. It feels alright to have a latte whenever I want it, but it feels invigoratingly awesome to take steps toward financial independence. Choose the better thing.
This is very timely for me (and funny, I've just done the physical overhaul myself), as Tripp and I are taking steps to scale back our lifestyle: putting our house on the market (it's a terrible time to sell, but we know God is more powerful than market forces :), getting rid of unnecessary "stuff" and just generally finding our way after years of not-so-great stewardship (we may be good at the parenting thing, but don't ask me for advice about money!)
Although it has taken an impending financial crisis to finally get our attention (sorry about that, God!) I am not feeling put-upon at all by the changes we are making. Instead, I am feeling utter joy and liberation.
The way I can describe it best is through a scene from Brother Sun, Sister Moon. Have you ever seen it? You should (available at Amazon or Netflix - maybe your local library?). And show your kids too! It's a Franco Zeferelli film from 1973 with gorgeous cinematography and music by Donovan - the story of St. Francis of Assisi, who came from an extremely wealthy mercantile family and turned his back on all that would have been his to serve the Lord.
There's a scene where he's throwing all his father's tapestry bolts out the window to the crowds below, exhorting them joyfully: "Give it all away!"
When his father chases him through the streets, beating him, he is still filled with joy at his own liberation, telling the crowds: "Look at my father - he has everything and yet how unhappy he is!"
It took me a long time to get to this place. I grew up poor and part of my journey has been to overcome that and experience what it was like to feel utterly comfortable financially - which at one time Tripp and I were. But the more exciting part of the journey is this new challenge of letting so much that really doesn't matter go - living more sacrificially and having an opportunity to demonstrate to our kids what is truly most important.
Wealthy people aren't necessarily selfish in terms of not giving to others - Tripp and I never had a problem giving lots of money away. But wealth still becomes a trap when you feel entitled - using your generosity as an excuse - to be self-indulgent and wasteful. It's something many Christians need to look at in their lives.
I'm sorry it took a crisis to get my attention on this one. But I'm the devoted student now, and eager for the lessons God's sending my way.
Thanks, Amy!
Posted in Downsizing, Family | Permalink
Comments
I know what you are saying! Though we have never been wealthy! ;o) At age 42 my husband became SELF-EMPLOYED, after loosing a job he loved. We had always talked about having a family business and this was the push...well it was more like a KICK...God used to get us to act on that. It has been HARD and WONDERFUL at the same time. We are living on less than half of what he use to make, but we are still here. :o) We have to say no to alot of things we'd really like to do, but it is OK! And our children work harder than ever before and they are learning the value of a dollar! Some days I wonder, 'why didn't we do this years ago'???? I say we should let go of the American Dream a little, and focus on God, family and community.
Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Kathy, Jeff's Wife | March 15, 2007 8:11 AM
Downsizing can be such a relief! After 10 years of doing what so many families dream of doing; moving to the country, trying to make a living from the land, we sold the farm. Funny thing is- we were so convinced that having the farm was what god wanted us to be doing. But the farm was bought with a huge mortgage, before having 2 beautiful babies, and required my husband to be gone 5 or more days each week to earn enough money to pay the debt. Maybe it was God's will at the time, but now things have changed, and our children are our focus, and the farm was a distraction.
Now we have moved in to a smallish (but big enough) house in a decent neighborhood, just 2.5 miles from my husband's new job. He's home daily and gets to come home to eat lunch with us. It's required a lot of purging, both physical and emotional, but it's worth it to have such a debt burden lifted.
We see our neighborhood as a mission field. Moving off the farm gives us more opportunity to connect with the community instead of being isolated and insulated from those around us. We still have enough yard to raise a large garden for our family, and my 'back-to-the-land' desires are off set by the huge amount of money we save in fuel from not driving so far to town all the time.
We still hope to have a place in the country someday, but next time, we will wait until we can do it debt free. This financial crisis we went through made us do things we wouldn't have done otherwise, and we are happy, content, and excited with the result.
Posted by: Amy | March 17, 2007 4:23 PM
