What Do You Value?

    Living in a city like L.A., it can be very easy for me to forget this question.  Everywhere I look, billboards and advertisements tell me what to watch, what to wear, what car to drive, what products to put on my face and body, and what plastic surgeon to see about changing said face and body.

    Though my family and I have lived simply and happily for many years, there is still the occasional marketing "tug" that suggests that I’m missing something: that I don’t have enough, that I don’t do enough, that my child isn't enrolled in enough activities, etc.  And, on occasion, if only briefly, I buy into it.

    What has helped to drag me out of the morass of “not enough,” is to remember that I am not a victim of my circumstances.  I have chosen, and continue to choose, to live simply because it affords me the "luxury" of spending time with my family, of doing what I love, and of engaging with the world in a way that is meaningful to me.

     Though my husband and I could work full-time at more lucrative jobs, we have each made a conscious decision to work part-time, from home, so that we can enjoy each other's company and have time with our daughter that is neither rushed nor over-scheduled.

      We choose not to buy things we don’t need (and even some of the things we want), because we’d rather put that money toward paying off graduate student loans, buying a mortgage-free home, and retiring from paid work in the next ten years—each of which is well within reach, given our spending and saving habits.

      What we receive in exchange for “stuff”, is freedom.  Though my life choices may seem weird to some (or just “cute” and endearing to others), I wouldn't trade what my family and I have for the world.  Our lifestyle has allowed us to travel, to volunteer for and support charitable organizations that are near and dear to our hearts, and to make our own work/play schedules—heading out on a Tuesday morning, for example, on a whole-family museum adventure.

      So….what do you value? What brings you a deep and abiding sense of joy, peace, and contentment?  What are you passionate about?  What excites and nourishes you on a soul level?  (These might include, but are certainly not limited to: spending time with your family and friends, taking part in a spiritual community, being in nature, doing the work you love, playing a sport you enjoy, being of service to others, pursuing volunteer and/or social justice work, giving money to charity, being environmentally responsible, eating healthy foods, being physically active, etc.)

     Keep a list of your values, your personal “touchstones,” near to your heart (or in your pocket), and when that voice of “not enough” comes up, take a deep breath, take out the list, and relax in the knowledge that you are living—or moving toward—the life you want to live.