I am learning there are certain activities that make me feel more content and activities that make me feel discontent.  Rushing makes me feel discontent.  Shopping often makes me feel discontent.  Exposure to too much advertising makes me feel discontent.  Unrealistic expectations also make me feel discontent.

However, I tend to experience contentment when I slow down, when I strive to accomplish less, when I embrace quiet, and when I focus on doing one thing at a time.  Everything seems to fade into perspective through these habits.  The good of my life shines through the broken pieces.

My grandparents are teaching me I can also experience contentment by looking back.

I began the process of interviewing my grandparents this week.  After interviewing my dad’s father, my Grandpa Pickies this morning, I spent a few moments wondering around his property.  I walked past the pond where I spent my childhood swimming in the summers and ice skating in the winters.  I watched the creek gurgle past that I splashed around in with my cousins.  I sat under the willow tree where I would tell stories to the cows.  I looked into the woods where I climbed trees and purposely got lost for a whole days at a time. 

And I cried. 

I cried because looking back allows me to claim all that has been good about my life even as I grieve the broken pieces.  My contentment seemed to grow a little stronger today.  I see my grandparents do the same as they tell their stories. 

I do not mean to imply they had it easy.  My grandparents, stories are peppered with the common struggles of the Great Depression and World War II.  My mom’s mother, who is my Grandma Marlene*, told me she lived in a tent for one full summer and winter because they were so poor.  And yet in the very same breath, she described the dancing parties her parents would throw and the beautiful clothes her aunt made for her when she was a child.

I can learn so much when my grandparents look back because their experiences teach me what to value in the present such as happy times with friends, the treasure of a gift made with care and the roof over my head.

Contentment can be found in looking back.

I know contentment is a vital part of learning to live a more sustainable and simple life.  Contentment is settling.  Contentment is free. 

How do you cultivate contentment in your life?  How do you settle yourself?  How do you gain perspective?

*I think I am going to use my grandparents’ first names as I refer to them in order to respect their privacy - except for my Grandma and Grandpa Pickies because “Pickies” was my nickname for them.  The creek pictured above is the one I played in as a kid at my Grandma and Grandpa Pickies’ house.

“Since the soap bars would get too little to use, like they do now, mother did not discard them, but melted them all together and ended up with the ugliest, misshapen “bar” of soap anyone ever saw.”  A comment from Barbara to How Would Grandma Bathe.

It looks like I am going to give up soap - liquid hand soap from a pump that is.  I have used liquid soap for years.  I try to reuse my disposable plastic pumps as long as they will last as well as refill my glass pumps.  However, they all stop working eventually.  I have a glass pump sitting by my kitchen sink right now that I am sure I spent at least $10.00 on.  The pump part of it is plastic and cracked on the inside.  I can still get soap out of it but it is a leaky mess.  When I have to toss out a pump, I recycle as much of it as I can but the rest goes into the trash.  I am pretty sure the pump part of most dispensers cannot be recycled.

I looked at the ingredients listed on my liquid hand soap refill container and most of them are unrecognizable. Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Lauramide DEA, Glycol Stearate, Sodium Chloride, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Fragrance, DMDM Hydartoin, Polyquaternium-7, Citric Acid, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tetrasodium EDTA, Mel (Honey), Lactose, Milk Protein, Glycerin, Hydrolized Silk, D&C Yellow No. 10, and FD&C Red No. 40.

Although it is not in my soap ingredients listed above, there is a growing controversy over antibacterial chemicals such as Triclosan that have been showing up in all things soap related in recent years.  If you are interested in learning more, the website Food and Water Watch has an informative article called What’s Lurking in Your Soap? 

Most homemade or all natural bar soap have a minimal number of ingredients.  I have a bar of hand soap made by a local company and it contains palm oil, water, goat milk, flax seed, coconut, rice bran, sunflower and olive oils, lye, shea butter, palm kernel and essential oils, silk fibre.  I recognize each of those ingredients.

Bar soap usually has little to no packaging.  When I have purchased it from a local source there is often only a little piece of wax paper, a small piece of cardboard or nothing at all used for packaging.  Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.  I have been recycling for awhile but I want to work on the other R’s - especially reducing the amount of items I throw away or recycle.  If I follow my grandparents’ lead, bar soap is one area where I can reduce my use of packaging.     

I am a little nervous about the “yuck” factor with bar soap.  I am sure it is going to leave my sinks a little more messy.  I will probably find blobs of soap on the floor from those times when one of my kids is washing their hands only to lose control of the bar and send it shooting to the floor.  I suppose it is a good excuse to give my much neglected bathroom floors some spot cleaning.

I have been using a locally made bar soap from Kinderhaven Farms (contact Joy at kinderhavensoap@voyager.net) which is available at Harvest Health.  I also recently bought some soap from Brickyard Farms (contact Cate at laneburke@aol.com) at my local Farmer’s Market.  I am going to pick up some soap this week from a local online retailer called Vintage Fresh Soap and Sundries (order from Heidi at Vintage Fresh Soap and Sundries).

Homemade or all natural soap costs approximately $4.00 per bar which may seem more expensive than liquid soap at first glance.  However, according to Heidi at Vintage Fresh Soaps, homemade soaps have more natural oils so people find they do not need to use as much hand or body moisturizers as a result.  I use my bar soap to shave and no longer need to buy shaving cream.  I am going to ask my husband to give it a try this week when he shaves his face.

I like the fact that I can use bar soap for more than one purpose.  I have also really enjoyed talking to the makers of each of the soaps I mentioned above.  I feel good knowing I am supporting a living, breathing person with my purchase.  It feels so basic and human and real. 

So starting today I am going to put all of my liquid soap dispensers into a box a box and find some little dishes laying around I can use to hold a bar of soap at each sink.  Soap is the perfect place to start my Grandma Challenges.  I use it multiple times throughout the day.  It will remind me to keep asking What Would Grandma Do?

Please send me a comment if you are going to try to switch to bar soap.  Let me know if you find a bar soap you like and send in your stories - your own or your grandparents!  I will let you know how I am doing with the bar soap switch over the coming weeks.

Yes, today is my birthday. Two of my dearest friends each brought me a bouquet of flowers from the local Farmer’s Market. I just had to share them because they are so beautiful. Also, how do you like my new site? My friend Jeff has been working hard on the design as well as fielding questions from me for months as I learn how to function in the world of personal blogs. Thanks for everything, Jeff! I think my newly designed site is perfect and a great addition to my birthday!

I had planned to post 3 Reasons for My Grandma Was Green today but my birthday seemed like a good reason to chill. Besides, it has been a lot of work trying to post everyday. Starting Monday, I am going to post 3 times a week. I will write more if inspiration strikes, but this project is really all about the doing. I need lots of time and space if I am going to learn to live like Grandma.

Speaking of living like Grandma - I will debut my first official Grandma Challenge on Monday! Many of you have expressed an interest in following my journey and trying to live like Grandma, too. Monday is your chance to get in on the fun. I made the first challenge an easy one to get started. Stop back on Monday and sign up!

P.S. I will post 3 Reasons for My Grandma Was Green at a later date.