The Simple Life by Rhonda Hetzel

Author:Rhonda Hetzel
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: simple living, fulfilling existence, sustainability, environmental impact, environment, lifestyle change
Publisher: Penguin Random House Australia
Published: 2014-02-24T00:00:00+00:00

Rhythms and routines

Changing old habits and establishing new routines is one of the hardest things you’ll do when you move from a consumerist mindset to a more frugal and homemade one. When I first changed from my old life to this new way of being, I knew I had to do a lot more for myself, but it was only after a period of trial and error that I stumbled onto a good routine that established a rhythm to my days. Since then I have not looked back.

I still work for money but it’s at a much slower pace now and I control how much I do. I work from home, writing books, blogging and organising talks and workshops. Throughout the day, I wash up, cook, sweep and wipe, set the table, look after myself and whoever is here, take breaks, sit and knit, or read and think, and all that is done around my writing work. One thing flows into the other, I don’t feel pressured, I get work done and at the end of the day, I have a few pages to edit. Working in this way, I’ve been able to continue working in a commercial sense as well as feel like a full-time homemaker. I look for new horizons so my work remains interesting.

I like doing my housekeeping now – it grounds me and reminds me every day that all the work both Hanno and I do helps create a home we love spending time in and fosters a relationship between us that grows stronger each year.

Establishing a housekeeping routine can be a daunting task but is made easier by small actions repeated regularly. I didn’t know it then, but when I made myself do my daily chores a little bit at a time, before too long I got into a rhythm that carried me through what I had to do. When I took up the broom and pegs as my tools of trade, I started with a little list of jobs I would do within a certain amount of time and during a particular part of the day. For instance, I would get up, shower, make the bed, write, feed the animals, check the chooks, set the table, make breakfast, clean the kitchen and make bread all before my unofficial time limit of 9 o’clock. By noon I had to have swept the floor, cleaned the kitchen benches and stove, and done any laundry that needed doing that day.

It is said that new habits need approximately three weeks to establish themselves and become part of your routine. Keeping to a list of tasks within a flexible time frame helped and I was surprised that, in the space of about a month, I had established a routine for myself that felt comfortable and easy to work with – and it got my housekeeping done. Once I had found that rhythm, I started thinking about what I was doing, how my work connected me to my female ancestors and how it made my life better.

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