Project du jour

I read an article the other day about a family that had given up their conventional four-bedroom home and, using two shipping containers, had created a new minimalist lifestyle with a vege garden, fruit trees and composting toilet to boot. The story talked about how much they loved their new ‘back-to-nature’ ways and how they couldn’t imagine going back to living the rushed existence they formally endured.

Well…….I loved it, of course! Cutesy wee log burner, bunks for the kids, artfully placed hammock, and no daily commute seemed idyllic. I mean, I often talk about (and more recently focus on) ways to live in harmony with the universe, and no, I’m not a tie-dyed shirt wearer.

I immediately launched myself into research about tiny houses, sustainable living, land options and, yes, composting toilets. My research was thorough and relentless. Spreadsheets were involved. I went so far as to speak with my husband about it. Posing questions like, “so, do we get the log burner with the cooktop or put our money into an extra solar panel?”.

Then, five days into my 2018 version of “The Good Life” (TV series from the 70s….Google it), my energy waned. My research had been interesting. I’d learned a fair amount and weighed the pros and cons and…..well…….lost interest. Not in the concept – I still think it’s rad – but I realised that taking this leap in my life (and my family’s life) right now wasn’t working towards the other goals we had set and it was becoming a bit of a distraction. Research scintillating, albeit complete.

A few days after that, sitting in my conventional home, looking out at the patio with its lacklustre outdoor furniture. I start dreaming about eating dinner outside with family and friends, and how a shade sail and festoon lights would really set the area off. Colourful cushions and lanterns would be perfect and I could picture the great BBQs with friends over the long summer nights.

Off I went again, researching outdoor furniture, lights, cushions, lanterns, shade sails, BBQs, plants, pots……….

And suddenly, I realised with so much clarity, it was happening all over again. My mind was at work. You see, to risk stating the obvious, the main function of our brain is to think. And given there are far less tigers / wild boar / poisonous berries in our proximity, it tends to think about other stuff. In many cases, the “other stuff” is dreams about the future or worries about the past.

My husband can attest that much of my thinking falls into the former category when I clamp on to a new idea or project. My mind, without direction from me, takes me off down a rabbit warren of thoughts and schemes. I invest heavily in exploration and then, without warning, my mind has had enough the investigation (which up until that point has been a slick operation owing to my control-freak nature) and it just stops.

The thing that gets me, is the time I spent planning and analysing so-called “next big project” I could have just as happily been working on the project that’s right in front of me. The one that I have already committed myself to and is totally in line with my values and life.

Let me be clear, I’m definitely not saying, don’t dream. Or imagine. Or get excited. That’s fun. But be aware that your mind can get all tricky-dicky where it gets you all invested in an idea only for it to ‘poof!’…..disappear. Next time this happens to you (and trust me, it happens to everyone), check in with yourself. Is this your mind taking you off on a three-day, thousand-page internet binge? If it is, then you, rather than your mind, have the power to decide what happens next.