{Articles Club} The Beauty of Living...Slowly: Tsh Oxenreider

Welcome to Articles Club, an online reading community focused on unearthing the art of eating and creating a home.  It’s hosted by Andrea DeVries and Abigail Murrish who take turns sharing pertinent articles on their blogs every Monday and asking questions to spur lively and kind conversation.  To learn more about Articles Club and the folks behind it, click here and here.

This week's article comes from a blog with several contributing authors, The Art of Simple. I love that this article touches on some of the cultural aspects to our busyness, and in some senses, our idolatry of busyness. I'm guilty of this with all my list-making and task-oriented tendencies. I'd like to hear your thoughts in the comments section! (To comment, click the title of this post and the comment section is at the end). Here is the first part of the article, and below I'll post a link to the rest of it.

The Beauty of Living...Slowly - Tsh Oxenreider

It’s been about six weeks since my family and I have been back in the U.S. There are blessings and sweet creature comforts we’re enjoying, to be sure (cheddar cheese, anyone?), but there’s one thing we always notice anytime we’re stateside.

We North Americans sure like to be busy.

There’s something about busyness that makes us feel productive, like a useful member of society. It’s nearly frowned upon to kick up your heels and spend time relaxing, especially with piles of work all around you.

It’s one major thing I love about living in the culture where we’ve been the past three years (and it’s common in most non-Westernized cultures) — relationships are more important than events.

Without fail, my husband and I struggle with the American busy lifestyle anytime we re-enter the culture here. It’s probably the one thing I miss the least about my passport culture—the ingrained belief that busyness equals value.

Finish the Article

Discussion Questions:

1. Is there one area of your life in particular that breeds a tendency to busyness?

2. How is a dedicated push against busyness and doing-ness related to our faith and relationships?

3. Do you think our culture of events and practices and obligations every night is related to a tendency towards materialism? Why do you agree/disagree?

4. In what ways areas of life have you already chosen to live slowly?