“Living the Good Life”

Seventy-eight years ago Helen and Scott Nearing left New York and moved to a farm in Vermont. The Nearings left the city for political and social reasons during the height of the “great depression”. They were seeking a simpler life.

Here is a quote from “The  Good Life”. My how things have not changed a whit in over 3/4 of a century.

…. demonstrating one possibility of living sanely in a troubled world. The ideal answer to this problem seemed to be an independent economy which would require only a small capital outlay, could operate at low overhead costs, would yield a modest living in exchanged for half –time work, and therefore would leave half the year for research, reading, writing and speaking.

Sounds good to me.

I remember in the early 1970’ listening to a speech by Scott who spoke while Helen sat on stage knitting. I can’t remember if she sat in a  rocking chair or not, but she was definitely knitting.

Scott had to be at  least 90 years old then; he lived to one hundred years. Helen lived a shorter  life passing away in her 90th year.

The Nearing’s were perfect for the 60’s as the gurus of “back to the land”, but they were really not about abandoning the world. They were about eliminating the…. obstacles to a simple quiet life-complexity, tension, strain, artificiality, and heavy overhead costs.

I highly suggest you pick up a copy of  “The Good Life”. I don’t suggest you quit your job and move back to the farm, but you might just find something here that helps you simplify, and the Post Consumerism blogger is all about simplifying.