Voluntary Simplicity

Voluntary Simplicity- On the Road

Where should I be from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM? That is my morning question. Free parking in the municipal lot ends at 8:00 and the public library doesn't open until 10:00. In Boulder, most parking spots are purchased or have a two hour time limit, which makes being an indigent nomad difficult. I've been living in my truck since I arrived in Boulder Saturday.

Before the move out West, while packing to take the long drive, I had to leave behind half of the bulk I'd brought with me for a summers stay in Pennsylvania: toys and non-necessities, plastic storage bins filled with extra clothes, a spa's worth of toiletries, an old fashioned camera, an inflatable exercise ball, trail maps, cooking spices and a food processor are among the items that come to mind. Many of the things I left behind don't come to mind, a sure sign that they are inconsequential.

On the long drive from New Jersey to Colorado, I had ample time to not only contemplate but viscerally experience the affects my material hoarding has on my life. While trying to sleep in the cab of my Toyota 4-Runner, I was always shoving stuff over so I could have a little niche for my sleeping bag. When it comes to basic tasks like making breakfast in a parking lot or charging my cell phone, digging through excess baggage is a drudge. Now that I am reconnecting with the basics of my life, I want to keep simplifying. I'm feeling the freedom of not having so much stuff to take care of. I want it gone... so I've decided to keep living in my truck and to say goodbye to my excess.

Freedom and the Open Road

I'm leaving today for Colorado. I'll be driving my trusty and rusty '86 Toyota 4Runner for the next four days.

You might feel the longing for the open road. There's a freedom in getting up to go on a long distance adventure. Needs become clear: food, shelter. Those will be the basics for the next few days, in addition to the gasoline to keep the adventure running.

Freedom. I'd like to be able to say that this road trip is a supreme example of the freedom I have, but it's not. I'm returning to grad school, finishing up a dreaded project I began four years ago. I will be living off my credit card along the way because I am financially weak. I will be missing my family and friends back East, and part of me doesn't want to go!

Still, I am free, not because I can go on some road trip, but because of my mindset. I know that I can do this and survive... even enjoy the experience. I have an inner strength that will carry me through the unknown that is waiting for me. Freedom is where one's head is at. Wish me luck.

Welcome!

This is a chance for you to take a peak into the process of creating an Artful Life, one that reflects deepest desires and connects with one's true path. Inspiration for the Write-Wild Blog are twofold:

First, YOU will know the route to your freedom as I describe my own journey. As we move through the terrain, your attention is drawn to spectacular views, of both inner-landscapes and wilderness vistas.

Second, the Write-Wild Blog fulfills a need for connection with others scouting the trail towards their bliss.


What is an Artful Life? How do we nurture the quality of Wildness? Are poetic urges challenged by a basic human drive for survival? What do we make of the little deaths, the day-to-day sacrifices to job, family, duty? These topics and many more are ripe morsels to savor in the Write-Wild Blog, where I will post glimpses from the field.