Lessons Learned Through Minimalist Living

It has been a little over a year now since we said goodbye to the ‘bricks and sticks’ lifestyle and with a leap of faith, embarked on our new minimalist adventure and RV living. With our children ages 10 and 5, we figured there is still a window of time to try to offer them more of a life of adventure before they hit their teen years and suddenly become adults.

Putting everything you have up for sale and moving into a home on wheels is not the life for everyone, but the concept of the minimalist lifestyle can be incorporated in any living situation and has many benefits.

What We Learned Selling Our House and Possessions

As we study other countries and cultures in our homeschooling, we have noticed that the western, privileged life is not necessarily the best way of life. We feel blessed to live in Canada with all its diversity, freedoms, and opportunities, but we don’t want to take these things for granted and become wasteful.

How many of us have found ourselves at the grocery store, and our children just have to have that toy. Of course, we want to see that grateful smile instead of the alligator tears of denial so we oblige them, only to find it buried in a corner of their room a few days later. Adults are just as guilty although it feels like we have been sabotaged by big tech corporations. With shopping now made so easy, the options are endless, and literally with a few swipes on our phone, packages are shipped right to our door!

Consumerism has become normal in western society, and while it offers us a very comfortable life, it can leave us feeling anything but satisfied and children and adults alike feeling entitled. Many people are switching their paradigms and being liberated to the minimalist concept. Selling our property was the easy part; the purge of endless ‘stuff’ that seemed to fill every nook and cranny was the stressful part. This is what opened our eyes, and I quickly realized that even though we recycled, repurposed, and reused as much as we could, we still accumulated more than was necessary.

Where We Lay Up Our Treasures

We had two weeks to vacate, and I am grateful because it made the purge a lot easier. There were basically three options: donate, sell, keep. Everything we had was sorted as such. It was stressful to see so many boxes full of various things that had added up over the years, and I truly felt in that moment that God was sending us a message. It is not what we accumulate in life that gives us value; it is what we do for others.

I am reminded of Matthew 6:19-21 KJV, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

The donation section was the largest, and our children were on board and excited to donate unnecessary toys, books, clothes, etc. to children that would appreciate them. All said and done, it was an enormous weight lifted off our shoulders, and we live a simple life, content with only what we need, which is still more than some people have. We give thanks each day for the simple things we have, the breath of life, good health, a roof over our head, food and clean water, and most importantly each other, family and friends. We are quickly reminded that the majority of what we are most grateful for cannot be bought.

Benefits of Tiny Home Living

Tiny home living has many benefits. One in particular is that everything has a strategic spot, and the unsaid rule is once used, it gets put back so actual cleaning takes about five minutes tops! I have OCD tendencies so this is right up my ally, and I no longer need to nag my children to clean their room. They take it upon themselves now to keep their area tidy.

Schooling has been enriched as I feel I have less distractions and chores and more time to focus on them. Part of our schooling is learning to enjoy an ordinary life, savoring the many flavors of different fruits and vegetables, bird watching out our windows, feeling the warmth of the sun, the satisfaction of helping others, feeling the love of a hug. It’s the everyday ordinary things that offer life’s greatest gifts. Without the many distractions, learning can be driven by passions, and each day becomes an opportunity to explore our interests and curiosities.

I have found that when we allow our children to feel safe and encouraged to explore their seemingly weird ideas, learning comes naturally with it. They will open the encyclopedia on their own accord to research. My daughter will recite random facts that I never even heard before. I sometimes find her quiet in her room, writing copy work from different books on random information that inspired her in the moment or role playing teacher with her younger brother and patiently helping him to learn the alphabet.

It seems too good to be true, but over the last three years, I have learned I only need to steer my children in the way of learning. Each year I have simplified the schooling plan, and it has always been beneficial. Curriculums have their place and structure is crucial, but for us it doesn’t include stumbling blocks like forced memorization for the sake of passing a test and then discarding that information to make room for the next.

Home education looks different for each family and has been such a blessing for children. It doesn’t matter what people’s religion, country, or culture are. It is about who our children are meant to be and inspiring and preparing them to face a competitive world.

Tips For Beginning Minimalist Living

Minimalist concepts can simplify our busy lifestyles, help our wallets, and take away the stress that accumulates. Closets are always a good place to start, and a good rule is if you haven’t worn it in the last year, you don’t need it. We don’t need ten pairs of jeans or leggings, an excess of t-shirts and dress shirts, and shoes, etc.

Apply this theory to every room of your home, and if you haven’t used something in the last year, chances are you can live without it. It can be a great way to give back to those who are in need in our communities. Children are sharp observers, and parents can set life-changing examples that help them to be content with what they need and not forever trying to satisfy wants.

Perhaps we can follow the examples of simply living from what we call third world countries, and more families could enjoy the essentials of life and have quality rather than quantity.

Written by Sandy Knudson

Sandy is a homeschooling mother of two children from Alberta. They are currently full time RVers living a minimalist lifestyle. She keeps busy with books and hobbies, mainly woodworking and pyrography, which she has been doing for a few years now. Sandy enjoys a faith inspired life and looks forward to what new inspirations the Lord has in store.