Welcome To Voluntary Simplicity and Simple Living Information

My name is Sharon Secor. I am a single parent, a freelance writer working from home, and a homeschooling mother. My path into these concepts began many years ago, with a casual wander into an Indian restaurant. The aroma of the spices was incredible -- and, for me, lifechanging.

One of my pleasures, inherited from my mother, is cooking ethnic cuisines as authentically as possible, so I embarked on an intense research project. While searching out non-Westernized recipes and cooking methods for Indian foods, I began to learn about the culture and its religion, Hinduism.

Then, in 1990, my first son was born prematurely – 27 weeks, 2 pounds and 2 ounces. We spent 14 months in the hospital before he passed away. His body outgrew his lungs, which, due to being born before they were fully developed, didn’t grow as fast as they should have. During those 14 months, with 8 to 12 hours a day spent at the hospital, I had lots of time to read and think. I had lots of time to think about what in life was truly important to me. And, very little of how we typically live today made that list.

I did go on to have more children, one more of which was lost, and I think that those I was fortunate enough to have survive and thrive benefited from the shift in my perspective during the time of Zachary. (The daughter I lost was stillborn, we had no time together other than the pregnancy.) They’ve benefited because I’ve come to realize that my time is worth more than money and that people are worth more than things. My relationships are the foundation of my life, and deserve more of me than does making money to buy a bunch of things which, in the end, are worth little. I have chosen to live my life, not let my time be eaten up in wage-slavery and an endless striving for more stuff, waking up one day to find my home is full of strangers -- children all grown up that I don’t know because I was always too busy.

Simplifying my life has been the key. While we do live simply, without an excess of material possessions, our simple living has allowed us to be wealthy in time. Voluntary simplicity has allowed me to reduce my expenses and devote less of my time to chasing the dollar. It has allowed me to do something rather rare in this culture… to be a single mother at home full-time with my children.

My children have benefited from this in countless ways. And, so have I. We live a good life and we have enough. Plenty, in fact, especially when compared to how most of the world beyond America lives. We are so fortunate, truly blessed.

My sister, Melinda Secor, also a freelance writer, single parent, and homeschooling mother, and I have partnered up to create this blog. We plan to offer practical information, useful tips, and interesting discussion as we explore the issues and topics related to voluntary simplicity and simple living.