Keep calm and be Zen!

Tuesday April 28^th

I have been thinking a lot about structure and in particular the structure of my life for the next year.   

Whilst I don´t want to create a new strait-jacket that restricts me I do want to have the opportunity to maximise my opportunity.

Once I decided that for all sorts of reasons that change was an absolute necessity, and that I wanted to take time out to deal with some issues I also realised that here was a great opportunity to experiment.

I have taken a small house in Cehegín, consisting of small living/dining room, kitchen two bedrooms, shower room and terrace. As with most rental properties it is basically furnished as you can see from the pictures.  And this is just dandy!

I have been reading a lot recently about the simple life, simplifying life and frugality, not in an Ebenezer Scrooge way, but more ascetic, more ZEN.  

De-cluttering from mind, body and spirit. Having given away or sold 95% of what I owned back in 2011, the task is relatively easy for me, although Nick and I have established a lovely home here, I leave Perú in two weeks with only two pieces of luggage and a carry-on bag.  Just as I arrived.  And I am determined that I will not be pushing at the boundaries of my 50kg allowance.  Knowmadic-mike is back.

I am amazed at how many blogs and website there are devoted to the simple life and simple living. Actually, I am not surprized, this life where we are connected to technology 24/7 is killing us as social animals.   Nobody talks anymore. Nobody reads anymore. We live inside a bubble and the reality of what is before our eyes is missed as we stare at a screen. Instant food, Instant communication,  instant gratification …… instant, instant……..

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Google map of the area here :  https://goo.gl/maps/zFH5v

Frugal living:  simple living:  rich living:  cheap living. What I want to achieve is a “simple-rich” life based on freeing up time and energy for what is fundamentally important (to me) some of which I know and most  of which I don’t. AND very rich in the things that matter.

This diagram is both exhilarating and frightening in equal measure. I have taught and discussed this idea so many times, in my incarnation as trainer, coach and management consultant, now it´s my turn to do it!  For real.

I realise that back in 2011 I did much of the hard stuff and today, I am really looking at refinement and going deeper not wider.  It has been gratifying to receive comments about what I plan and they are food for thought.  
Going back in order to go forward.

The exploration of the past is not for everyone, and I fully understand the notion of just looking forwards and not back and I agree with that to some extent with caveats:

1.        My creative mind imagines all sorts of future scenarios in great detail, but they are not reality; no matter how comforting or exhilarating. But they contain the seeds of what is possible or hoped for.

2.       Getting the most out of today has to be the number one priority, living each day to the full and not regretting another day wasted.

3.       When your past disables your ability to live and exploit the present and holds you back from that bright future he has to be dealt with.  I feel aspects of the past as an insidious worm gnawing away deep inside my personality. No more.

Once dealt with it is on to green fields and pastures new.  

Time is such a precious gift and I have given myself that in abundance, now I want to use it more wisely.

I have just read an article about 50 things to do in order to simplify your life, I reckon I have already achieved about 60% of these! But I am horrified at how many of these simple living websites (mainly from the USA) seem to miss the point, especially when it comes to the simple joys of eating. Part of simple living for me is to have more time to cook, not less. Easting simple healthy food, home prepared, of exploring new tastes and regional foods; balanced with the joy of eating out (though less often).

On August 24^th, 2016 I will be 60.  I celebrated my 50^th birthday is some style (understatement) and I intend to celebrate the start of my 7^th decade in some style, though I suspect a somewhat different style.  Anyways the great work now is to get there and to enjoy the journey. And to achieve my goals for this part of my journey. I have 16 months to do it.

It is very interesting, I have just read an article entitled: 12 Essential Rules to live like a Zen Monk ……. Not that I am proposing a return to any monk-ey business but the rules are:

1. Do one thing at a time with full concentration

2. Do it slowly

3. Do it completely

4. Do less  (you have to in order to be able to incorporate 1 -3)

5. Put space between things (allowing time to do things incorporating 1-4)

6. Develop rituals (rituals make even mundane things have importance)

7. Designate time for certain things (eating, walking, shopping, reading, painting, writing, thinking….)  to ensure regularity.

8. Devote time to sitting or other meditative activity to concentrate on being “in the moment” 
9. Smile and serve others, even if it´s just a greeting in the street

10. Make cleaning and cooking become meditation and to enable mindfulness, concentrate on every aspect of it

11. Think about what is necessary for living and remove the rest(I am along way there with only my two bags of possessions!

12. Live simply..............

 

And to me they make perfect sense, as I fill my days, in doing what has to be done. But of course for me there also has to be time for spontaneity as it is important to me.  But of course I am in charge, so no problem!  It would be so easy to fritter away the time ……. And that is not going to happen.