Lucretia

My path to living more gently.

Some call it simple living. I prefer the term live more gently. Living gently paints a word picture for me that encompasses all life - body, mind, and spirit. One cannot truly live simply unless all the elements that make her human are involved. It’s not just about the environment or the economy. It is about life and living life fully every day. 

I married young and most of my young adulthood was spent in pursuing what the “they’s” of our world told me was important and necessary. It was truly a chasing after the wind and resulted in a fruitless and empty life of debt. There was no lasting happiness only momentary pleasure that quickly turned to grief when the bills came in.

Change began when I became a believer in Jesus Christ and fell in love with the Word of God. Immersing myself in the study of the Word opened a new world and a new way of life. I learned that true happiness isn’t in a product, a building, a car, or clothing - not even a bank account. All these have proved the Word of God to be true - they are transient and fragile.

What did I learn? People matter. Happiness, joy, and purpose are found in relationships. My family and my friends bring me great joy and, at times great challenge. Time matters because it is finite. The choices I make regarding time and people are important and become fuel for my journey.

A gluten intolerance, that I believe I was born with, went undiagnosed until 2006. It was very hard to diagnose and even harder to weed out all the sources of gluten in my life. Researching to rid my body of gluten was a HUGE eye opener to my ignorance of the things I was allowing into my body. 

Living more gently took a new course when I developed an allergy to the chemicals used in the manufacture of latex. It took a year and many doctors to properly diagnose and treat this allergy. Finding products that are latex free is a challenge and it was in that search that I discovered just how many chemicals pervade our personal environment. 

Today, I purpose to eat only whole food in its natural state and to eliminate processed foods. This is an activity that my husband and I share and it has brought a great joy to our lives. We are also attempting to eliminate as many chemicals as possible in the personal products we use.

I have pledged to nurture my mind through reading and studying. My soul is nourished by regularly worshipping in my faith community and by studying the great spiritual teachers. Living more gently has drawn me toward the contemplative nature - quietness - simplicity - meditation - the beauty of creation - all these are working themselves in me and through me. 

I hope this journal will spur you to live more gently with yourself, with others, and in the world.