Next week, my wife, Sarah, and I, along with a couple of our friends, Melanie & Connor, will be taking a trip to Alaska. We’ll be gone seven days, most of which will be spent in the national parks around the Anchorage area.
I think we’re all longing for a vacation, but one think I’m not longing for is packing.
Packing is always an overwhelming chore to me, and no matter what, I always over pack. I think through every weather scenario that could happen while there, and also plan on having hours of free time, so I not only take ample amounts of excess clothes, but I also take way to much ‘stuff.’ Rarely do I ever wear everything I bring, and I never use all of the things I bring to occupy my spare time.
But that’s also a bit like life. We over prepare.
We have all of our insurance, our back-up plans and savings. We have excess clothes, furniture and food that never gets eaten. We have a lot, at least in America. And of course, those things are not all bad. It’s good to have insurance and savings.
But something I’ve been wondering lately, why did Christ teach simplicity, minimalism and giving, rather than accumulating, but also expect us to live feasibly in today’s world of always having extra and a back-up plan? Still trying to figure that out.
-Cliff
Cliff’s Note: Pack light, except socks & underwear.