Even though August tends to be a slower month with lots of people on vacation, in my life, things haven’t slowed down at all. I’m back home from New York City after a 7-week stay with my son and everything seem sto be gearing up. After just two days at home, my stepson arrived for a visit. My son started danced classes again, my daughter now needs to be driven to work since we don’t have an extra car and her parking permit ran out, I have a ton of work, and next week she has a crazy schedule as does my son as he goes into his second dance intensive this summer. Not to mention that I have deadlines and things to send to publishers.
With that in mind, today I want to talk about simplifying our lives. I’ve let my life get totally out of hand the last two years. I refuse to do that any more. I want to find ways to simplify, slow down, get grounded. This reminds me of a teaching by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov. Actually, much of Rebbe Nachman’s teachings can be distilled down to one lesson: Simplicity. While we tend to make everything very complicated, Rebbe Nachman said:
The main goal of a Jew is to serve God with simplicity and without any sophistication.
(LM II:19)
For Rebbe Nachman a simple person, a tam, is not simple minded and lacking intelligence but someone who is unassuming, sincere and straightforward. This person shuns twisted reasoning. In this case, the word “simple” implies wholeness, singularity and unity. Â Additionally, simplcity represents freedom and purity. It’s an attitude that allows one to stay grounded while also connecting with the highest realms of Spirit. It’s a way of thinking that is uncomplicated and unstressful, clear and balanced.
By becoming a tam, you can not only make your life less complicated and less stress filled, but you can connect with God more easily. When you serve God simply, without complicated thoughts and ulterior motives, you find yourselves easily and quickly in God’s presence. When you do so “without sophistication,” you do so humbly and in a manner devoid of pretense, thus allowing you to feel God’s presence rather than being focused only upon your own.
Ah…I’d like to be a tam. I’d like to have some simplicity in my life.
I suggest that during the month of August, if we can’t take a vacation – or even if we can, we consider simplifying our lives and our thinking. We should all consider taking Rebbe Nachman’s advice and making everything a bit simpler. Then, we can see if we can’t take that same attitude into the rest of the year. We might be amazed at the difference it will make in our lives. I know it will make a huge difference in mine.
