simplicity.

The phrase "you can take a girl out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girl" fits me to a T. I was born and raised in the country, surrounded by fields of corn stalks that towered over me with more cows and horses for neighbors than people. I definitely took that life for granted. Now that I'm older, what I wouldn't give to have a little ranch house with a beautiful roan mare in the pasture beside it. I would drink in the tranquility and peace as I rocked on my front porch swing with a black lab curled at my feet.

Some days, and today is one of them, I find myself wondering how I ended up here. Not that here is bad; I actually quite enjoy my life. But I have found myself imagining my ideal life lately, and this just isn't it. I want out of the city and the proverbial rat race. I want a simpler life without the intrusion of influences that tell me I have to be this or own this or look like that. Sometimes I found myself so wrapped up in the material things in life I loose sight of what is truly important. I can't see the sunrise for the need to get somewhere, fast. Thank goodness these moments are not overly abundant but they have increased in frequency. And that is just what I don't want. I don't want to miss the moments I'm living in thinking about the future or what I need to buy. I don't want to think that my happiness hinges on the accrual of material possessions.

It doesn't.

My happiness hinges on my relationships, on the love I give and receive. My happiness is determined by my contentment with myself and who I am and what I've accomplished. My happiness is fueled by living in each moment, knowing it will never come again, and writing those moments on my heart. My happiness is my own to make.