Under the Microscope

If you follow Rhonda's blog at Down to Earth, you would have read her most recent post about taking her as she is. She talked about criticism that often comes when we write blogs. How opening up our homes and hearts to share this journey with others can end up with our hands wrapped. It's happened to me and it can be very jarring.

I have been loosing my stamina lately with this blog and with simple and green living in general. I feel I am under close scrutiny, that my opinions and actions are under close watch by those eager to point out any inconsistencies.

I started the process toward a simpler way of life a few years ago. Since then my ideas have grown and then tapered off a bit depending on certain outcomes and life circumstances. I think given that the process is a journey and not a fixed destination, there is no finishing line and that my goals in homesteading and green living will be in constant flux. However more than once I have I been on the receiving end of reprimands for my seemingly lack luster efforts. Some purists are more than happy to point out my flaws with the way I define homesteading or living an environmentally conscious life. Because of this, more than once have I thought of closing the blog and walking away from the blogging community.

Because I don't have a farm (nor do I see myself obtaining one in the future) I am seen as a wanna be, a pretender, and psuedo homesteader but one that should not be taken seriously. Sometimes I am able to laugh off these comments but other times not so much. We all approach our homes in different ways. We all do our best for the situations we find ourselves in. No one is perfect, nor should we expect them to be.

I try my best but it is discouraging when my best does not seem good enough. When my efforts bring about negative comments instead of encouraging ones. On one hand I am glad to see, after reading Rhonda's post, that I am not alone in feeling somewhat dejected but on the other I am disappointed that those people expecting perfection are so quick to point out where others fall short. It shouldn't be that way. Shouldn't we be ever encouraging and truly supportive of any efforts? I have never claimed to be an expert. I have never said I have it all figured out.

When I decided to live simply, if I had looked at all the changes needed and expected them to be made at once I would never have started this journey. I would have been too discouraged to even begin and what a shame that would have been. Some parts of the journey move fast and furious while others are slow and calculated. Others still are not moving at all. In the end, I need to move at my own pace, changing the things I can while accepting the things I can't.