As I age and think back a few decades or so,
I realize that what I surmise of times way back then,
It may have been simpler, easier-paced, but perhaps not so kind.
Compared to our speedy life, they were slower.
That’s for sure.
Handling today’s struggles in light of the vapid past,
We call them easier times because we had so little stuff.
Pennies and the silver from which you bought dreams meant something.
If you wanted a dollar, you went out and earned it.
Grandmother gave us a dollar or two for our birthday,
But mowing yards, turning in bottles, and handling chores.
By the end of the teen years, after-school jobs became full-time.
That’s where dollars came.
Church was our focused place to learn of God.
Jesus. The Holy Spirit. Fruits and Gifts. Love. Mercy. Grace.
But it was also our focused group of friends and family.
Similar backgrounds, although we struggled differently,
We knew more about us and them than the world around us.
Yes. Born in the ’50s, but “of” the ’60s, we were mostly protected.
JFK, RFK, MLK, Cold War, Vietnam, Hippies, Drugs, Rock music…
Tumultous times that made home a safe bet for good growth.
And grow, we did—a foundation we were blessed to have.
I’m not so sure about safety in these current times.
Jump into the ’70s. Married. Kids. Let’s go to Alaska!
Simple life started getting complex. We now had commitments
And oh, the bills we had to pay. And way back then,
We had very little company-provided insurance.
You mostly funded your own needs from the recesses of savings.
My son’s birth cost $755, and my company had just upped the coverage
From $500 to $755 in 1978. Not insurance, mind you, but a stipend,
If you please, for us to pay the exorbitant costs.
Then, my daughter a few years later in Alaska, and now we had insurance.
It was roughly $3k, and insurance covered everything but $100 or so.
Somewhere along the way, life was no longer simple.
We never saw it coming, but we were living it.
Complex. Expensive. And everything kept increasing.
Higher, Costlier. More difficult even though it was better (?).
Our house was 240k back in 2003 when we
Relocated from AK, and now? Triple, if we are to sell,
But then, what would you buy? Land? Build?
The cost of lumber and labor – scary!
The minimum wage was once 65 cents.
But now you work in fast food for $20 or more!
And a craftsman easily earns half a sawbuck or more.
Did we ever see the Internet coming? Mobile connections?
Legal drugs? Homelessness? Broken homes? And the pandemic?
Change has been forced down our throats whether we believe it or not.
We are involved in the changing of life from simple to dangerous.
Complexities. Sin. Degradation. Nothing is simple.
Just about everything has become weird.
A favorite singer with a voice I never have to guess the words,
And a laid-back style of music with peaceful melodies,
Alison Kraus sings a song with a video of a simpler life.
That’s what we all want. A Simple Life.
Here, Alison sings of a Simple Love… Yep. That, too!
Maybe you would click and enjoy her music video. “Simple Love“
This morning, I pause in my thinking, turning to my bible.
I search for answers, a change of heart, and enlightenment in my soul.
His Word never fails me, even when times seem to grow weirder and strange.
May His Words speak to us on this last day of the month.
A new day appears tomorrow, and we have a chance to change.
Where to? A more simpler life.
Philippians 4:10-13 NKJV
But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now
at last your care for me has flourished again;
though you surely did care,
but you lacked opportunity.
Not that I speak in regard to need,
for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:
I know how to be based,
and I know how to abound.
Everywhere and in all things
I have learned both to be full and to be hungry,
both to abound and to suffer need.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
1 Timothy 6:6-10 NKJV
Now godliness with contentment is great gain.
For we brought nothing into this world,
and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
And having food and clothing,
with these we shall be content.
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare,
and into many foolish and harmful lusts
which drown men in destruction and perdition.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil,
for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness,
and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Thank you for reading.
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It helps me get my book written!