Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Whhhaaaatttt?!?!

Has it really been a whole month since I posted last??? Total fail on my part. I was doing so well there for a little while too! Man. Well, I have been busy to say the least. Taking 21 credit hours, finishing up my last semester at my Uni, on top of MOVING (woohooo yaaaayyy) has been taking priority over my crafting adventures. Well actually, my crafting adventures have been more like redirected toward setting up house and such :-)


(Living room/ dining area/ craft nook)

We have done SOOOOO much work on our little apartment over the last few weeks. We started with a deep clean, paint, repairs and more paint and repairs. Last weekend we finally moved in (THANK YOU everyone who help in that crazy effort!) and as of late we have been unpacking (yuuuuuuckkk). Question- why in the world do we have so many booookkkkssss?????(thousands I feel like.) And boy, I thought we had purged before we put all our stuff in storage (I gave a way about half of my whole wardrobe last May) but I seem to have forgotten that, and have been purging all the more the last few days! It feels amazing by the way.

(Ryan- in the ONLY closet in our apartment)

Both Ryan and I are sentimental, which is super fun, but also cluttering... especially when you travel as much as we do and feel like you have to hang onto every museum flier, tour ticket stub, and all the other little "treasures" you accumulate over the years.  All of this stuff is weighing me down. After not seeing any of my stuff that was in storage for almost 11 months... I am so much more aware of my non-need of almost all of it! I believe that Ryan and I are embarking on a new journey- one of simplification. A, what you could call, minimalist-ish life. Ryan and I may not be anywhere near "rich" by American standards, but is that how we should measure our lives? Is that how Jesus wants us to measure our lives? I really don't think so, actually, I know it's not. We, as Christians, are called to be pilgrims. We belong to God and therefore need to be ready and able to do what He calls us to. How can we do ANYTHING that God desires for us if our treasure is in our belongings, if we're made heavy and static because of all our CRAP we're held down by!... oh, sorry... I mean stuff.  How easy would it be for you to move to another country next week? Could you pack up in time?- bring it all with you? What if God calls you to give up ALL your stuff to make that move? Could you do it? Don't doubt that God could demand that of you, He's done it to many before!

Anyway- read my friend Abby's blog here. She posted a post today that speaks to my heart on this very same subject.

I know, i know... Some of you may be wondering how all of this simplification will be able work out if my passion is, in itself,... making stuff. I'm still waiting to see how it all plays out. With both of us working from home, it may be an interesting journey.... but one I'm willing to go on! Anyone else with me?!

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the encouragement, Elyse. I'm stoked about CIIS!

    I think living more simplistically is the best way. It's a beautiful ride. We're with you and Ryan.

    I have a theory. The more like animals we become the better. Think about it: Animals have learned to live within their environment in a peaceful way. They don't take more than they need, often times they work together in groups so that everyone can survive, they don't collect shit-- they just re-build shelters when needed. They get what we don't: that if you continually to damage and destroy what feeds and protects you,eventually you'll die! I think humans are finally starting to catch on. We're a little slow.

    Anyway, I'm proud of you guys for being more conscientious. Yay!!

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