Another inspired thought-piece from @mountainjewel (Ini here!).

This is my entry into the #freedomchallenge hosted by @sagescrub. As always his prompts are thought-provoking and inspiring. Check out his post here.

Lately the idea of freedom has been coming up a lot in our household.

Freedom from worry, freedom from stress, freedom from "shoulds" (cultural or self-imposed), freedom to be expressed and creatively satisfied.

Freedom is both a concept and a choice. Freedom DOES relate to external circumstances, but inherently is more about our individual orientation to the events, situation and circumstances in our lives.

Taking time to smell the flowers (narcissus)

So How are we taking action to ensure our freedom?

The biggest theme that has been coming up for us is reducing expectations and lowering the workload. We are the ones who dictate our lives, yet we have created a situation where the self-imposed work load and expectations have become overwhelming at times...

Wild Water

So what's the big deal of setting high expectations?

Well... It has a lot to do with setting unrealistic and difficult-to-achieve goals. These then trap us into ideas and deadlines and loose ends of unfinished projects. Ultimately this situation does not lead us into a higher degree of freedom. And we got into the homesteading lifestyle because we sought a way of life filled with freedom.

This is exactly what we are endeavoring this year: including more freedom. More free time, less stress (the ultimate lack of freedom in my opinion) and more autonomy over creating the life we love and desire. Sure our homestead requires our attention, after all we have hundreds of plants in the ground and some need our TLC BUT... What effects do these caretaking obligations have on our freedom?

Time spend appreciating wild triliums

Freedom is all about perspective and approach so this year we are choosing freedom over all else.

This is a tough one, because I (Ini) for one have crazy drive to accomplish "things". But if accomplishing things is what I'm after, it will never be enough and my freedom to express my true unique self and ability to enjoy life will be squelched. Not to mention the fact that tasks on the homestead are NEVER over and I will end up running on the hamster wheel.

This is tough for me, but ultimately a choice that honors the longterm commitment we both have to this land, this lifestyle and our projects. Freedom is a choice and this year we are choosing freedom over stressful work loads and imposed expectations!

Unfurling May Apple

With all the externally imposed expectations and cultural norms we live with, it behooves us to take our lives and freedom into our own hands. We are capable of imposing mental slavery or liberating ourselves with the basic and simple thoughts of our everyday life. So today, we choose freedom and release expectations and unrealistic standards.