Maybe our society is finally on the right track. This article about McMansions is encouraging. Perhaps in the end, less will be more and simple will win out over complicated.
I had my moment of simple bliss this evening. In order for the reader to understand it better, I will need to provide some background.
I grew up in New York City, a place where getting close to nature wasn't easy. My home was in the lesser known borough of Staten Island where I lived until I left for college. Staten Island was the ultimate 70's suburb consisting of neighborhoods of homogeneous housing all crammed together. Each had a postage stamp sized lot and there was enough room between each home to drive a car through...nothing more. As a kid, my life played out on asphalt streets, concrete sidewalks and the occasional small square of grass that most area rugs could cover completely. There were no "woods" or "forest" nearby except for a small "wildlife refuge" about 15 minutes away by foot. The "refuge" was probably only a few dozen acres in size and was wedged between the largest garbage dump on the planet at the time and an eight lane wide main traffic artery. If you stood in the center of the "forest,"you could smell trash and hear traffic. The refuge was the place I'd go to pretend I was in a real forest. It was the best I could do.
On rare occasions my family took us to the mountains in upstate New York. I loved it there. It was strange to not hear the ever present background drone of cars, trucks, air conditioners and airplanes. The air was fresh and smelled of leaves and balsam needles. There were working farms too...something not seen in the big city. I remember the sweet aroma of hay, horse feed and the old wood of a centuries old barn. I recall a day when it rained while we staying at a mountain house. The clouds hung below the summits of the distant mountains enshrouding the seemingly endless forest in mist. The only sound was the rain and when I closed my eyes, I could smell the earth, the trees, hay and the nearby farm. It was my childhood nirvana. My escape from the concrete and noise of the city.
Seventeen years ago, I moved to the medium sized coastal city where I now reside. Although I often longed to escape the city when I was young, it still lived within me and I knew that I needed the stimulation, career opportuities and convenience it provided. My current location affords me the ability to spread out a bit and create surroundings that are pleasant without having to worry too much about the encroachment of excessive noise and neighbors.
I've been in my current spot for five years and the cultivation of our surroundings is an ongoing project. We have a vegetable garden, lots of trees, three roaming chickens, an herb patch and a bit more grass than I had as a kid. Half of our land remains wooded and natural.
So...here's the moment of bliss thing.
Today it rained. A lot. In the waning light of evening I stepped outside. The light rain through the trees was a comforting sound. I don't know about you, but that's a sound that lulls me to sleep at night. There was no extraneous noise. I decided to venture into the garden for a few moments to see if anything needed to be picked. The chickens followed. I pulled a few tomatoes from the vine and for a few moments I stopped, closed my eyes and turned my face skyward. The light rain was cool and I could smell the damp hay we had used as mulch between the veggie beds. I could make out hints of a barnyard scent from the coop behind me with notes of the feed and the nesting straw. The hens chatted and scratched around me. I could smell the wet lavender and rosemary. I was transported back to my childhood vacation spot in the mountains near farms and forests. My moment of zen. My simpler life away from the clutter and chaos and hurry.
Take simple moments. Breathe, touch, smell... Feel alive.
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