Sorry for the long post in advance, I've been simple living for a while now and I recently stumbled upon this subreddit and was really excited to share my experiences with the community.
I was born in Colombia but raised in Miami, Florida since I was 4 years old. Needless to say Miami is the kind of place that will force the hedonistic treadmill down your throat by the time your old enough to read and write.
I grew up always looking for the next new toy, phone, girlfriend, drug, etc. I was constantly in search of a satisfaction that always seemed to be just a paycheck away from my grasp. It was this cycle that saw me almost homeless and addicted to substances and any vice that could keep my attention. Work, eat, smoke, play, sleep (barely), repeat. Never satisfied.
Then I came to the lifestyle of simple living by faith. I'll leave the faith part till the end of the post in respect to the nature of this subreddit and to those that don't care about the spiritual aspect.
Here are some of the things and tips that I've learned about simple living in a city that worships image, sex, and money. Disclaimer I'm not a psychologist, nor do I claim to have the answers to life and satisfaction, but these are just some of the things that I have experienced along the way.
---Limit or drop social media altogether if you can.
You might find that most of the people you follow are only interested in portraying a fake sense of happiness and constantly exposing yourself to that will produce a sense of dissatisfaction in your life. In addition you might fall into the same cycle and find yourself trying to convince others that you have a happy life. Seriously, I encourage anyone trying to get into simple living to see how impactful it can be to not be glued to your phone looking for some fake sense of satisfaction.
---Limit screen time in general.
One of the first big changes I made was deleting all my video games off my computer and my phone. I also gave up binge watching television. Look around, odds are there is beauty where you live, take it in. Don't let a screen rob you off a peaceful train ride or a beautiful sunset.
---This one goes hand in hand with one and two, be hyper aware that big city living will force consumerism on you in anyway it can.
Television, social media, ads, jobs, everything in my society is interested in getting me to believe that my happiness depends on what I have and what people think of me. When I learned to pay attention to what really makes me happy, I realized that it had nothing to do with what I had and what my perceived image. This gave me the freedom to enjoy the people and experiences in life.
---Identify the big city stress factors (there are many) and find simple ways to deal with them.
For me its traffic, everyone in Miami is in a rush and there's always traffic. This leads to extremely stressful one hour commutes to and from work. Takes the simple right out of living and tosses me into the rush with everyone else. My solution, giving myself more time to get where I'm going, and audio books. If I'm not in a rush, I'm less likely to be stressed. In addition, having a good book playing makes driving to and from work more of an experience. This is just one of many stressful things about living in a big city. My point is to sit down and analyze how you can turn these experiences into something you enjoy, or at least something that is fruitful.
---Relationships.
Don't settle for a false sense of community online or from movies, books or shows. Go out there and make friends, people who you care about and people who care about you.
---Diet and exercise.
Fast paced city lifestyles (in my opinion) lend themselves to unhealthy eating habits and lack of exercise. I found myself lacking time and energy to cook meals and exercise and this affected my body in a very negative way. I was always tired but I could never sleep well. The week I began to exercise and meal prep, I immediately realized a change in my quality of life, better sleep, more energy and a better outlook on life.
So there it is folks, these steps helped me take my life from "Thank God it's Friday." To "Thank God I'm alive." From running around with my head cut off looking for happiness, to finding joy in my everyday life. Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier if I moved into a cabin in the woods in Montana, but I have realized that simple living is a way of life not a location. I feel called to be in this city and I have learned to love and care for Miami. My hope is that I can help others learn to love life in the city as well.
Faith I left this part till the end but it is, in my own personal experience, the most important part of my lifestyle. I consider the change in my life to be a direct correlation to my belief in Jesus Christ and the following of his teachings.
I'm not talking about over politicized hateful, arrogant and pretentious religion. I'm talking about the loving, caring, and simplistic lifestyle that Jesus Christ taught and led. I'm not here to preach so I encourage anyone that is looking into simple living, even if you don't believe that Jesus was more than a man, to read his teachings.
I'll finish with this verse, that in my mind personifies the idea of simple living.
Romans 12:9-20
9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[a] Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[b] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
Submitted May 26, 2018 at 12:58PM by ElcapitanS https://ift.tt/2sfZAtA
