SIMPLIFY

February 8-March 6, 2025 | Waterside RV Resort | Sebring, Florida

The old Shaker hymn, “Simple Gifts,” has been a favorite of ours and has deep roots not only in our upbringing but also our professional lives. It’s something we aspire to achieve. The first verse goes something like this:

‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free,
‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When we first started thinking about retirement and truly simplifying our lives by shedding things in favor of exploration, adventures, and experiences, Cheryl purchased a couple of Life is Good® t-shirts. Of course, Marsha thought this was ironic. Nonetheless, Cheryl still has them and has recently been very proud to wear the one that says, “SIMPLIFY” with an image of a camper. Now that we’ve retired and have Yin and Yang, it’s feeling a lot more like dreams do come true.

Getting to SIMPLIFY is a long and difficult path. At first, when we decided to retire earlier than planned and put our house on the market, it seemed an insurmountable task to let go of so much we’d worked so hard to curate in our home, our keepsakes, and our 40+ years of working beside so many amazing people. We started with the “no-brainers” – those things that had little meaning or had outlived their usefulness. Many of these found new homes through Goodwill. Then we swung to the other end of the spectrum and identified the “must keeps” and were amazed to realize that the list was rather small. We were left with the “nice to haves but no longer need” items, which we were able to include in the sale of our home.

Along the journey to SIMPLIFY are a few really good realities:

• As long as we have each other, what else do we really need.
• Those few things we do keep must serve a clear purpose.
• Passing along gently used items can be a blessing to others.

As we transition from owning a home to living full-time in our camper, it’s been a lot easier to let go and SIMPLIFY. Life IS good, and we are enjoying the benefits of being unencumbered with things and taking on new explorations, adventures, and experiences. Next stop, Pine Mountain, Georgia, March 6 -13 to reconnect with Cheryl’s best friend and her family while enjoying the natural surroundings at F.D. Roosevelt State Park.