Simple Living Movies/Documentaries

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“St. Francis of Assisi was hoeing his garden when someone asked what he would do if he were suddenly to learn that he would die before sunset that very day. 'I would finish hoeing my garden,' he replied.”

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Interesting. When I read that question yesterday about just one day of life, I thought about it and honeslty couldn't imagine doing anything other than what I was doing at the time - listening to classical music and knitting a colourful winter head band with my little dog at my feet asleep.

If I had one day left, I would get on skype and/or the phone so that I could see/hear/talk to the people I love; seeing their faces (via skype/zoom, etc) and hearing the sounds of their voices... memories/senses I hope would make going through the death process even just a little easier.

DD! sent me this link about our use of time which seems to fit in with the discussion and active simple living.

https://dailystoic.com/time-manageme...EZEM_8WNEjw5mo

“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.” — Seneca

What’s ironic about this quote is that Seneca was one of the wealthiest men in Rome during his lifetime. What’s not ironic is that, despite his fabulous wealth, Seneca seemed to be mostly indifferent to it. In “On the Shortness of Life” he wrote “So it is inevitable that life will be not just very short but very miserable for those who acquire by great toil what they must keep by greater toil.” And he also made a point of periodically depriving himself of the luxuries he had available (more on that below) so that his peace of mind would never come to depend on possessing them. By stripping away all the externals as often as he could, he made sure that he most valued the only thing he could truly lose and would never return, his time. Because Seneca knew that if he spent his time on the things that truly mattered; like reflection, bonding with friends and loved ones, important work, then the rest of his life would fall into place."

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Originally Posted by razz

DD! sent me this link about our use of time which seems to fit in with the discussion and active simple living.

https://dailystoic.com/time-manageme...EZEM_8WNEjw5mo

“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.” — Seneca

What’s ironic about this quote is that Seneca was one of the wealthiest men in Rome during his lifetime. What’s not ironic is that, despite his fabulous wealth, Seneca seemed to be mostly indifferent to it. In “On the Shortness of Life” he wrote “So it is inevitable that life will be not just very short but very miserable for those who acquire by great toil what they must keep by greater toil.” And he also made a point of periodically depriving himself of the luxuries he had available (more on that below) so that his peace of mind would never come to depend on possessing them. By stripping away all the externals as often as he could, he made sure that he most valued the only thing he could truly lose and would never return, his time. Because Seneca knew that if he spent his time on the things that truly mattered; like reflection, bonding with friends and loved ones, important work, then the rest of his life would fall into place."

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OMG, razz, you got my heart beating faster here--this is exactly in the ballpark of my recent simple living direction. In fact, the program I embarked on in 2020 was heavy into Stoicism. Also, I've been drawing on some of the mystics and their view of purgation and detachment which is totally aligned with these ideas.

Also, Richard II is my favorite Shakespeare play and the home page of the website you posted prominently displays one of my favorite quotes from that play: "I wasted time and now doth time waste me."

You hit a home run with me on that post, razz :).

Happy, I would do the same as you.

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Originally Posted by razz

“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.” — Seneca

What’s ironic about this quote is that Seneca was one of the wealthiest men in Rome during his lifetime. What’s not ironic is that, despite his fabulous wealth, Seneca seemed to be mostly indifferent to it. In “On the Shortness of Life” he wrote “So it is inevitable that life will be not just very short but very miserable for those who acquire by great toil what they must keep by greater toil.” And he also made a point of periodically depriving himself of the luxuries he had available (more on that below) so that his peace of mind would never come to depend on possessing them. By stripping away all the externals as often as he could, he made sure that he most valued the only thing he could truly lose and would never return, his time. Because Seneca knew that if he spent his time on the things that truly mattered; like reflection, bonding with friends and loved ones, important work, then the rest of his life would fall into place."

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I think it is easy to decry the spoils of wealth or be "indifferent to it" when you HAVE wealth. If he did not have the wealth and the ease of life that goes along with it (i.e. basic needs easily met, etc), I'm thinking his idea of how he actually had to spend his time (i.e. getting food, shelter, clothing, etc.) might be realistically different, if not ideologically different as well. He *deprived* himself temporarily by choice; he was not deprived by circumstances on a continuous basis. I think there is a huge difference.

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Originally Posted by happystuff

I think it is easy to decry the spoils of wealth or be "indifferent to it" when you HAVE wealth. If he did not have the wealth and the ease of life that goes along with it (i.e. basic needs easily met, etc), I'm thinking his idea of how he actually had to spend his time (i.e. getting food, shelter, clothing, etc.) might be realistically different, if not ideologically different as well. He *deprived* himself temporarily by choice; he was not deprived by circumstances on a continuous basis. I think there is a huge difference.

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That's true, but it doesn't diminish the effort--He's not saying wealth is "evil"--he's saying there is a risk of falling into the comforts of luxury and then being unable to be happy without them, so he keeps himself in check by self-deprivation on occasion. I think that coincides with Jesus's admonition to the rich man who asked how to enter the kingdom of heaven and Jesus said, "If you want to be perfect, go sell all your possessions." and the man went away unhappy. I think the point of that story is that the young rich guy knew he was unable to detach from his stuff in order to achieve heaven.

It's really more of a personal point about not letting yourself get too attached to stuff, not a statement about wealth in general.

A lot of people have the ability to deprive themselves by choice (ie fasting), but then that doesn't apply if one is already starving of course. So yea like I said I actually find asceticism somewhat interesting. But yea of course Seneca was coming from a place of immense privilege. Someone working two jobs to survive is not worrying about if they are making optimum use of their time, or that is the optimum given there is little choice.

The pathology of worrying about wasting time is more the expectation that every minute of one's life be filled with productive activity. Meh to that. Time will waste you quite regardless of whether you "waste" it or not. You don't turn the wheel of time, you are just along for the ride. Though I suspect a lot of time "waste" even addictions, t.v. or internet whatever, even though it may be an easy way out, is it at root about mood regulation. Too much time and what exactly happens to one's mood? I've got too much time on my hands and it's ticking away with my sanity .... (though too little time is perhaps more often felt to be the case).

I'm definitely not saying wealth is "evil". But I do believe that the degree of one's wealth (i.e. having basic needs covered, etc) has a direct effect on how one thinks about "deprivation". I just question how realistic it may be for someone to "keep himself in check by self-deprivation on occasion" versus actually living in a state of deprivation. I think the first does not have that level of anxiety/fear/struggle/etc. that actual deprivation can cause because that deprivation and those results, when done by choice, are able to be removed by choice.

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Originally Posted by ApatheticNoMore

The pathology of worrying about wasting time is more the expectation that every minute of one's life be filled with productive activity. Meh to that. T

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Again, I'm going to disagree.. to me wasting time is filling up time in ways that are not in alignment with your values. To me wasting time at this point is working more than 4 hours a day at a job that serves me only as a means of income. Wasting time is overlooking opportunities to sit outside and daydreaming or going for a nature walk or having a meandering conversation with a friend. Wasting time is not calling someone you love over a long period of time. Any time that is not spent intentionally is a waste, IMHO.