Living With LESS

 

After nearly a year of retirement and about six months of living alone I've come to realize I don't need much to be comfortable and live a good quality of life.  Since the first of December I've been working on that.  I began with a whole house declutter and on the first of January I began another one, literally starting over and beginning again.  I was amazed at how many more things I've found to get rid of.  This year I'm seriously thinning things down.  I want more open spaces, fewer stuffed cupboards and just less stuff around me.  I want to be less encumbered. Living with less is one of my goals this year.

 

If you've been following my blog for any amount of time you know I retired early, a couple years earlier than I originally planned.  Initially I was going to retire this year on April 1, 2023. But instead I chose to trade that in for two super thrifty years and an extra year of retirement.  While there were some stressful moments at first and I questioned the wisdom of that decision I now know that was definitely the correct choice for me.  I still have another year of super frugal living ahead of me and I'm completely fine with that.  I can tighten my belt, drive less, spend less and consume less.  For me it is a very fair trade off in order to have my freedom. 

 

I've never had a luxurious or frivolous life and I can honestly say I've never really wanted one.  I have never coveted a big house, fancy cars, a lot of money, big vacations or had the desire to hang out with the rich and famous.  Far from it.  I've actually leaned completely in the other direction.  All I've ever desired was to have what I need and to enjoy a comfortable life by means of my own hard work.  That is what gives me joy.

 

As a young single mother there were times when I would worry and lose sleep over how I would pay all of the bills, or take care of an unexpected expense or repair.  But once you've managed to fix something that broke or figure out how to make a meal out of practically nothing it is a real confidence booster.  Soon you come to realize that with a little thought and some extra effort there isn't much you can't do.  There is always a way to figure it out.

 

I started out my adult life with very little and a low income and I figured out ways to make the most out of what I had.  It was a necessity at the time that has grown and become a way of life.  As time went on and my income grew I didn't do what a lot of people do and increase my standard of living.  Instead I saved that extra income and continued to live as I had until I saved enough money to purchase my own home, which I still live in.  It isn't an extravagant home by any means, large enough to accommodate our needs while small enough to remain affordable to live in.  Then as my income grew again I continued to save my money and live as I always did. Very simply, very comfortably.

 

The knowledge that I don't need much in my life to be comfortable has been a source of confidence for me.  It has helped me immensely with successfully taking on early retirement.  There is great freedom in that as well.