Today’s Homemaker

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it means to be eco-friendly. It seems there’s always two sides of the coin to everything. Organic farming is better for us, but not necessarily for the environment (as far as land usage goes). Flourescent bulbs take less energy, but contain mercury. Ethanol and other bio-fuels are not mined from the earth, but they still require a huge production process and might leave a just as huge a footprint as other fuels.

Since my mind is spinning from so much conflicting information, I’m taking my thought process another direction today. I’m finding a deep need to “green” up my time.

What does that mean? Time is a finite resource, just as this planet is, and I want to make sure that I’m not wasting it away on things that might be “easy” or provide immediate pleasure but do not contribute to my (or my family’s) ultimate health and happiness. In other words, some of the best things in life take the most work, and I’m not going to sit here doing the easy thing while those opportunities are passing me up. So here are some things I’m going to work on:

1. Get up when the sun does.
   Not only can we save electricity by going to bed earlier and utilizing as much of the sun’s light as possible, but getting up early has lots of other benefits, as well. I have always been a night owl, but I secretly long to be an early bird. At my ripe old age of 25, I’ve already given up hope of the possibility. But I truly believe that it’s the one thing that would change my life. At least I believe that now. At 6am, I don’t believe it one bit.
2. Have friends over at least once a week.
   Believe it or not, I am not automatically a people person. But research has shown that all other factors being the same, people who maintain good relationships outside of their families live longer (and happier) lives. In fact, my pastor shared with us a study that suggested that it’s healthier to eat a Twinkie with friends than broccoli alone (In moderation, people…don’t go setting up nightly Twinkie binge dates with your friends. I know that’s what you’re thinking.)
3. Limit computer/tv time.
   Egads, why am I listing all of these things that I have such trouble with! I would much rather list the things that I’m already doing, such as “Read 200 blog entries a day” or “Convince neighbors that pajama-wearing is the height of fashion in France.” But limiting “virtual” time automatically makes it easier to fit in actually living your real life. The struggle comes when you’re so in love with your computer that you just can’t imagine real life being any better. (Thanks a lot, Mac.) I think there must be a 12-step program for that. Call me if you find one. We’ll go together.
4. Paint/garden/dance/create.
   Americans are consumers in every sense of the word. Even when we have down time, we’re consuming. We gobble up media like it was essential to life. We inhale articles on “How to do this” and “How to do that” but we never actually DO them. Sadly, information overload does not enrich our lives [pdf]. But it’s much easier to consume than to create. Fight consumerism! Make a gourmet meal. Plant a container garden. Learn how to sew. Creating is ultimately much more fulfilling than consuming, even though it’s the harder thing.
5. Give, give, give.
   Sometimes there is so much information out there about war and poverty that we think we couldn’t make a difference even if we DID have an extra heap of cash lying around. But giving isn’t just good for the person who receives…it’s actually good for the giver, too. But you already knew that. What you might NOT know is that we don’t just need to give to the poor and needy. We also need to give to our friends and people who we come in contact with regularly. Give a card. Give a hug. Give a phone call. As a last resort, give an email. If you stay mindful of opportunities to give, you will open your life up to more joy than you might have thought possible.

So that’s my list for living on green time. I’m thinking of posting it on my inspiration board just to remind me of what my “good life” would look like. What does yours look like?