A Meaningful Life

I’ve been checking out the blogscape (as in landscape of blogs) and there seem to be a trend of bloggers pursuing the “simple life”. This is definitely a trend I’ve seen emerge in Denmark for the past couple years with that charming TV-farmer-do-it-yourself-guy and I’m sure that is (not the farmer-guy, but the romantic idea of a simple life) also partly why I find the cabin lifestyle in Alaska so intriguing. A friend of mine just told me that living in the big city, one has to buy everything. Even if you aren’t very materialistic and don’t feel that buying new shoes is a comfort you still have to buy a ticket to see a show, a concert or a movie. There isn’t just a forest near by to go meditate in or a small town band playing for (almost) free somewhere. I think this is partly the reason why people dream of a simple life – it’s a life without the pressure of having to afford pleasures. But isn’t this also a dream that only middle class people with suburban background can afford to have, because they have the luxury of choice? I myself not excluded. A lot of people have gotten bored with having everything or being capable of buying everything. So we’ve started pursuing that which can’t be bought. The search for a simpler life has begun. But maybe the word “simple” isn’t really accurate for what we are searching? We are searching for something with a different meaning to it. Something that isn’t just mass-produced in China or the same old love song with a new voice attached to it. Something that isn’t the same as what our parents fought for and established. And this is difficult because our parents fought for equal rights for women and men, economic freedom and the opportunity for us to have and do whatever we wanted. And we can’t and won’t argue against our parents’ victories – they are very important. They also leave us with a dream of a simpler life. Here I am free to do whatever I want but what exactly is that? I’m trying out the “simple” life: living in a house with no running water, no shower, no toilet. No big concerts, fancy restaurants or fashion clothing stores where I live. No noisy neighbors or public transportation. I’m also knitting my own mittens and socks and trying to bake my own bread. I grow a vegetable garden in the summer and will be able to catch plenty of fish in the Alaskan rivers. I’m somehow searching for what is true, even natural maybe.

I think this search for something with meaning in it is also why younger couples choose to get married with white dresses in churches again. And why mothers choose to stay home with their kids instead of working. We are all searching for something with meaning in it: be it true love, raising kids or non-materialistic living. To call it a search for a “simple life” is misleading, because it’s not that we don’t want to work hard or have things. To call it a search for a “meaningful life” is more accurate because we are sometimes truly lost with what we have.