2010-02-09
Hello everyone!
Oh my goodness, its been so long since I last updated. This is a result of a combination of things - firstly, I lost my home net connection for awhile there (just a glitch between my account and my ISP - all resolved now). The second reason is that I have been consciously trying to live up to my word of the year - to celebrate.
And I've realised that celebrating one's day to day life doesn't leave much room to write about it. For me celebrating inevitably means people. I am not one to celebrate alone (though I do admire those who can do it). So my days and nights have been filled with spending time with family, as well as old and new friends. Its been a wonderful few weeks for me, reconnecting with people and indulging in past pleasures.
But I digress from the purpose of this post.
I have received a couple of emails asking me if I am a sole parent (yes I am) and how do I manage live on one income while still living and consuming ethically.
Photo by Ryan Opaz
Now, I have to say that my first reaction was to say that I never saw being a sole parent or being on a single income had anything to do with how I consume. My initial thoughts were that average people always have a choice in regards to how they spend their income - whatever the amount of that income is and whether the income is coming from one or many sources. I maintain that we truly do not need as much stuff as we currently have, nor do we need to keep spending money to maintain stuff that we do not need. In my experience, decluttering and downsizing were HUGE steps towards becoming more empowered with how I spend.
I simply don't buy a lot of stuff - nor do I have a lot of stuff to maintain.
Which means that when I do buy stuff, I am more able to buy according to my values (aka "joyful consumption").
I know that I might be coming across as a bit flippant about this. Believe me that is not my intention. I know its been a hard journey for me to get to where I am now and I acknowledge that I still have a way to go. Consumerism in our society is inextricably linked to our sense of identity and (dare I say it) self-worth. Taking steps away from all that is hard...BUT I hope people know that it can be done.
...Now all that I've written so far, as I've said, was my first reaction. And I do believe that it has a great deal of truth in it for me... but on reflection, I also realise that I would be wrong in saying that there is no link between being a sole parent and ethical consumption.
In reflecting my consumption choices over the last 4 years, I realise that being a sole parent (for almost 2 years) has allowed me to make financial and consumption decisions without having to consult another person. I am in (what I regard) a very great position to truly consume according to my values.
That's not to say that it can not be empowering to make decisions as a couple. I know that when I was married, there were times when I felt empowered after we had negotiated win-win situations. ...But it is harder and I'm afraid I don't have any good advice on this one (indeed, I am probably the last person who can give that advice anyway).
I can say this though, living simply has enabled me to make choices and adjust to a smaller income more easily. When I think of the way I used to be as a consumer, I truly think that I would not have been able to make the adjustment to a sole income as smoothly as I did.
So I guess in some ways, you can say that living simply has not only allowed me to live ethically, but its also empowered me to deal with life's challenges. In short, my simple life allows me to dance even when its raining.
I wish you are all well.
************
Oh and on a totally unrelated topic, I am pleased to announce that the National Library of Australia recently contacted me to ask for my permission for this blog to be part of its Pandora Archive.
I have to admit, I am quite flattered that they think my blog is worthy of Pandora and I look forward to the day when I can show my (hopefully) grandchildren this blog in our National Library.
A big thank you to all my readers who have commented and emailed me. Your thoughts and questions continue to be a source of great learning and encouragement for me and my journey. I hope that, in turn, you were also able to get something out of my blog.
*****************************
Oh my goodness, its been so long since I last updated. This is a result of a combination of things - firstly, I lost my home net connection for awhile there (just a glitch between my account and my ISP - all resolved now). The second reason is that I have been consciously trying to live up to my word of the year - to celebrate.
And I've realised that celebrating one's day to day life doesn't leave much room to write about it. For me celebrating inevitably means people. I am not one to celebrate alone (though I do admire those who can do it). So my days and nights have been filled with spending time with family, as well as old and new friends. Its been a wonderful few weeks for me, reconnecting with people and indulging in past pleasures.
But I digress from the purpose of this post.
I have received a couple of emails asking me if I am a sole parent (yes I am) and how do I manage live on one income while still living and consuming ethically.
Photo by Ryan OpazNow, I have to say that my first reaction was to say that I never saw being a sole parent or being on a single income had anything to do with how I consume. My initial thoughts were that average people always have a choice in regards to how they spend their income - whatever the amount of that income is and whether the income is coming from one or many sources. I maintain that we truly do not need as much stuff as we currently have, nor do we need to keep spending money to maintain stuff that we do not need. In my experience, decluttering and downsizing were HUGE steps towards becoming more empowered with how I spend.
I simply don't buy a lot of stuff - nor do I have a lot of stuff to maintain.
Which means that when I do buy stuff, I am more able to buy according to my values (aka "joyful consumption").
I know that I might be coming across as a bit flippant about this. Believe me that is not my intention. I know its been a hard journey for me to get to where I am now and I acknowledge that I still have a way to go. Consumerism in our society is inextricably linked to our sense of identity and (dare I say it) self-worth. Taking steps away from all that is hard...BUT I hope people know that it can be done.
...Now all that I've written so far, as I've said, was my first reaction. And I do believe that it has a great deal of truth in it for me... but on reflection, I also realise that I would be wrong in saying that there is no link between being a sole parent and ethical consumption.
In reflecting my consumption choices over the last 4 years, I realise that being a sole parent (for almost 2 years) has allowed me to make financial and consumption decisions without having to consult another person. I am in (what I regard) a very great position to truly consume according to my values.
That's not to say that it can not be empowering to make decisions as a couple. I know that when I was married, there were times when I felt empowered after we had negotiated win-win situations. ...But it is harder and I'm afraid I don't have any good advice on this one (indeed, I am probably the last person who can give that advice anyway).
I can say this though, living simply has enabled me to make choices and adjust to a smaller income more easily. When I think of the way I used to be as a consumer, I truly think that I would not have been able to make the adjustment to a sole income as smoothly as I did.
So I guess in some ways, you can say that living simply has not only allowed me to live ethically, but its also empowered me to deal with life's challenges. In short, my simple life allows me to dance even when its raining.
I wish you are all well.
************
Oh and on a totally unrelated topic, I am pleased to announce that the National Library of Australia recently contacted me to ask for my permission for this blog to be part of its Pandora Archive.
I have to admit, I am quite flattered that they think my blog is worthy of Pandora and I look forward to the day when I can show my (hopefully) grandchildren this blog in our National Library.
A big thank you to all my readers who have commented and emailed me. Your thoughts and questions continue to be a source of great learning and encouragement for me and my journey. I hope that, in turn, you were also able to get something out of my blog.
*****************************





