Tis the gift to be simple, Tis the gift to be free,
Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gained,
To bow and to bend we shan’t be ashamed,
To turn, turn, will be our delight,
Til by turning, turning, we come ’round right.
-old Shaker hymn (Elder Joseph Brackett)
That’s one of the first songs I ever learned to play on the recorder in 4th grade. And it’s been stuck in my head for a few days, now.
Over the past several weeks and months, I have been doing a lot of thinking as to what this next year is going to hold for my life–at least, as far as the choices I make and the actions I take that I can control part of it, because there is still always that whole “unknown” factor. I’ve basically resolved that I would like to be nearer to my family, which means moving back out West, and I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of time on Realtor.com and Utahhomes.com and the like.
I love looking at houses. I always have. I’m drawn to the architecture (I have a crush on 1950s/60s era ranch homes, anything Frank Lloyd Wright, Craftsman style bungalow/tudors, cottages, and cabins). I guess in some ways, my interests kind of clash with each other. I like “contemporary” and clean, efficient spaces, and I like the coziness of cottage/cabins, but as opposite as those sometimes may sound or appear to be, they really can go hand in hand. I love all the “built-ins” that were once incorporated into homes. Find me a home with built-in bookshelves or other interesting storage solutions/ways to maximize space, and my heart goes pitter-patter.
So, in all of my house-browsing, I resolved that I was now officially “saving up for a down payment.” I played with the mortgage calculators, and found that wow–now is the time to buy. Interest rates are at an all-time low of 3-4%. (When my ex and I bought our house, at the height of the boom in 2003, our interest rate was in the high 7%, with excellent credit.)
Speaking of that, I learned a lot about banks and real estate and stupidity during that home-buying process. For instance, based on one income alone (because we wanted to be safe in a one income situation), the bank approved us for over $250,000. I can see how so many people got in trouble and over their head with their mortgages, because had we taken that, or even close to it, we would have been struggling. I still think of that and shake my head in disbelief. Because, I’ll be honest–when we first got that quote back, I saw the dollar-signs of possibility in my head, of what kind of house that could be, and I was like, “Aw yeah, cha-ching! Fancy countertops, here I come!” I mean, it’s tempting. It’s tempting to “take that money and run,” so to speak. Especially when you look around and it appears as though that is what everyone else is doing/has done.
Have you ever noticed, that we all want bigger/better (or at least as nice) homes than our parents have, right when we start out, when often times our parents worked 20-30 years to achieve similar goals? Our expectations, where housing is concerned, have super-sized along with everything else over the past 1-2 generations.
I probably talk about my grandparents on here a lot, but only because they are the best role models and examples I’ve had in my life. My (maternal) grandparents have never had a mortgage in their life. They lived in a tiny apartment above someone’s house at the beginning of their marriage, saved and built one house, lived in it, bought property “in the country,” built a garage (lived in the garage), dug a basement, complete with kitchen (lived in the basement), and then built a very nice house, which they then moved into and raised their family for 30+ years, before downsizing into a smaller house and spending winters in Florida in a fifth-wheel camper that they pull with their truck.
My grandpa worked hard, owned his own business (excavation–made digging his own basement pretty easy, ha), and they have been SUCH an example to me, for many things, but mostly for living a life of frugality. They had/have money. And yet, they have always lived below their means (which, surprise, is how they have money, I’m guessing.) They always take care of their things. In 1999, when he retired, my grandpa bought his Chevy Silverado and the camper they travel in, and they are still using them to this day–and they look amazing. Have they needed repairs and upkeep along the way? Sure. My grandpa recently replaced all the carpeting in the trailer with new laminate flooring, etc. You walk into their trailer and it looks like brand new, even though it is 13 years old, and even though many of their friends and travel partners have traded in and upgraded many times over.
They are the most generous, kind, giving people I know, and it is because they have created a life where they can be. They set goals and attained them. They set boundaries and kept them. They can discern between a “want” and a “need.” They lead a pretty simple lifestyle, and they are able to travel and see the world.
All of this back-story to say: I have really started re-evaluating if I want to take on a home loan this year. Or next year. Or at all.
What if I could pay cash for a house?
What if I could be challenged every day to live simply?
What if I wasn’t a slave to our debt culture?
What if that simple financial freedom allowed me the ability to give more (of my money, of my time) and use less (energy, resources)?
What if I built one of these?
Photo Credit: Portland Alternative Dwellings
TINY house!!
I first become aware of the small house/tiny house movement a while back… but I was deeply entrenched in the American Dream and the Jonses and expectations and STUFF. My 3-bedroom 1500sf house, believe it or not, didn’t seem big enough to me, most of the time. I had lots of stuff. And then, as life would have it, 2 years ago I downsized… to what fit in my car. I moved to Nashville and rented a tiny bedroom for a year:
My Little Room
I became a master at storage solutions and was sort of energized by the challenge of finding new ways to store things and the freedom from the “culture of want,” because I knew quite frankly: I did not have room for anything else. If I got something new, I would have to give something up. I spent a LOT of time in that room, and you know what? I really liked it. It was cozy. It was comfy. It was organized. I knew where stuff was. And also? I spent a lot of time outside of that room: exploring. I think if you are in a smaller space, the outdoors become your living room (as other people have said).
I don’t know… at this point, I’m not really writing this post for anyone but myself, because I’m trying to organize my thoughts. I’m debt-free right now, and I know I’d like to stay that way. I believe it is possible, and I believe if I WERE to do something “CRAZY” like this, now is the time. I would not plan to stay in TINY house forever, but it would allow me to save more money for my next building project. A small cabin or cottage. (Maybe this?)
Ultimately, I believe the “American Dream” is freedom. Land of the free, right? I think we’ve lost sight of that along the way somewhere. I do not NEED a 2500sf house. At this point, I would have to buy a whole house of stuff to put in that house, and really, that just seems kind of counter-intuitive to me. (However: It is not my mission to judge anyone in a beautiful, large home. To each his own.)
Is the small house movement/TINY house idea drastic? YES. Is it radical? YES. Am I crazy for even thinking about it at all? Probably. But what if? What if it was fun? What if it was freeing? What if it was possible? What if I loved it? (If I hate it, I could just stop and sell it, and not really be out anything.) What if it provided the fodder to write something worthwhile? (You know, that silly writing bug of mine.)
Life is filled with choices and possibilities and adventures. And it doesn’t even always come down to one “RIGHT” answer and one “WRONG” answer. We get the freedom to travel a winding road and mix things up along the way. I might just soon become the crazy/outcast/whackadoo of my family (and believe me, in my family, that bar is set pretty high). We’ll see… lots of thinking, prayer, and research to be done.
I suspect I will be blogging more about this as I sort all of this out. So… yay for that, or ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ, depending on your interest level.
