My lifestyle could be defined as rustic. Although I have power and Wifi, I heat with wood and don’t have running water. I spend about 10 hours a week in the winter clearing snow, managing wood, and pumping and hauling and heating water. Although I could be doing other things and it’s a lot of physical work, it has its plusses.

It saves me money. When a traumatic brain injury from chemo ended my ability to work a regular job ten years ago, I had to come up with an alternative living arrangement, something I could afford. Rustic living was a viable option.

It keeps me fit. I often say this lifestyle will either keep you young or take you out early. So far, that first one seems to be true. It also keeps me low to the ground––I’m very aware of how many resources I’m using every day. I honor my woodpile, the bodies of living trees offering themselves for my warmth and survival. I reuse my water as many times as possible before giving it back. I feel consistently connected to the natural world in a way that would be difficult if I lived a wealthier lifestyle. I feel grateful every day for the way I live.

As Deng Ming-Dao teaches in 365 Tao:

“Why were people of old so integrated with their surroundings? Because the objects they used, the food that they ate, and the activities that they engaged in were straight from their surroundings. They used sticks made from bamboo as eating implements. They used vines to make baskets. They used gourds as vessels. For food, they grew plants, domesticated animals , and caught fish and game. Their social structure was built around the cycles of the sun, moon, and stars. Newborns babies were washed with the waters of the nearest stream. The dead were buried in the same earth that provided sustenance.

Now our food is imported from distant places and elaborately processed. We have no idea where objects we purchase come from, thinking that their presence and convenience is all that is necessary. We have means of transport that can bring us to places faster than our minds can adjust. We abuse our wealth and use it to insulate ourselves from our surroundings.

That’s why being of modest means is not necessarily bad. When one is poor, one is forced to use what is at hand. It is Tao* that brings us those things. The closer we can be to the earth and to nature, the more integrated with life we shall be. Followers of Tao never complain about feeling alienated from life: They have no choice. Their every action keeps them synchronized with the movement of Tao.”

I’m currently reading a 3-volume book about the traditional ways of Native Americans, as told directly through the words of an elder. You know that feeling you have after being in the Boundary Waters for a week? It think that traditional people felt that way every day of their life––because they were in harmony with Life Force.

 

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*Tao = Harmony with The All