Sometimes life gets messy, complicated, too busy, or painful. We, who like to think of ourselves as responsible hardworking people, can beat ourselves up thinking we’re not doing enough. It might be missing deadlines, not recycling enough, being lazy, or not living up to our values as fully as we would like. This week was like that for me.
I came back from a trip sick, felt miserable, at the last minute had to beg out of a meeting that I was supposed to lead, and felt guilty. I’m behind on my twice-a-month blog posts. I’m still sick. Letting go of my guilt was the first task. Picking an easy blog post was the second.
Here’s what I’ve got – Simple is good.
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Forgive myself.
For example: We live in Covington, KY but its right on the border of Cincinnati, OH and thus we’re part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area. Covington has weekly curbside recycling for the usual plastic bottles, glass, paper, cans, etc. BUT, I have to search for worthy homes for other household items like clothes and kitchenware. BUT, Cincinnati just started a new curbside recycling option called Simple Recycling. You just put clothing, shoes, and home goods in one of their large orange plastic bags and it gets picked up weekly. The problem is you have to live in one of the participating US cities. We just took our bag to one of our Cincinnati friends who gladly put it out with their curbside recycling. Done!
It’s not perfect, but it’s easy – if you live in the right city. Simple Recycling is not a non-profit but they recommend Donate Stuff for people who want to go the extra mile and get a tax receipt. Unfortunately, Donate Stuff also does not operate in many cities.
Some questions for you:
*How do you keep your living lightly simple?
*When do you make compromises?
*What gets in the way of doing good because it’s just too complicated or takes too much time.
Others will appreciate your tips.
