The fifth chapter of Mitten Strings For God is titled Simplicity.
When thinking about simplicity, the first thing that comes to my mind is dear St. Therese and her “little way.” She tells us,
“Our Lord needs from us neither great deeds nor profound thoughts. Neither intelligence nor talents. He cherishes simplicity.”
Our Lord cherishes simplicity, so shouldn’t we?!?
With each passing year, each new baby, and LOTS of Reading, I have been s-l-o-w-l-y learning how to simplify my life. I always seem to be catching my self taking on more than I can possibly accomplish, and as a result, being completely overwhelmed and having a very unorganized life. As you know, I have been spending much time decluttering and simplifying, not only our home, but our time as well. I have found that simplicity is the key to living an ordered life.
One of the things that caught my attention in this chapter, was when the author said, “So often, it seems, we are the ones who make our lives more complicated than they need to be. We set the bar too high, take on too much, turn small doings into big ones.” She goes on to say, “With so many options and opportunities to choose from, it can be a challenge just figuring out where to draw the line.”
With my introduction to blogs this past year, I have been overwhelmed with the wealth of ideas out there! There is just SO MUCH!! I want to do it all!!! But, I have to remind myself, that this is not best for my family… I know, I’ve tried!! 🙂 My children are the happiest when I keep things simple. I believe that this is because, when I cut back on my planning and preparation, I have more time to spend with them! The things we do together, do not have to be extravagant to be loved and enjoyed. St. Therese says, “You know well enough that Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, nor even at their difficulty, but at the love at which we do them.”
My favorite quote from this chapter was, “Once we take the pressure off ourselves to do things in a big way, we find more reasons to celebrate life’s little moments.”
This was what I needed to hear today! Thanks, I have to remember to say no, and not listen to guilt when I wish I could do a new project or sign up for another gathering. I have spent some time sulking that we can’t do as much as I’d like with other homeschool families because we have only the one car that hubby takes to work.
After a busy week last week, I am thankful for being a homebody….lol
This was one of my favorite chapters in the book. Your post was great. I loved the St. Therese quotes.
All I can say is Amen. And, now if I can just figure out how to make a seemingly complicated life more simple. Where DO I draw the line? 🙂