Radical Homemaking

Living Intentionally & Living Fully

5 Life Standards of Living More with Less

’I came across Shannon Hayes' book a number of years ago, and find her paradigm for thinking about lifestyle choices we get to make in this day and age an intriguing one. The basic idea is this: radical homemaking involves “casting aside the pressures of a consumer culture to live in a world where money loses its power to relationships, independent thought, and creativity.”

When it comes to being radical homemakers, I don't claim that John and I have arrived, but the choices we get to make on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly basis invite us to respond from a place of nurture, enoughness, and integrity rather than feeling like we have to prove something.

I struggle with the temptation to overconsume eco-friendly this, that, and the other. And I have more reuseable bags than you can shake a stick at, but I love learning patience and perseverance as I start our garden from seed, learn to keep track of produce cycles to pick, can, and freeze strawberries, cherries, and blueberries.

Radical Homemakers has given me a larger context to think about our family’s practice of living more with less. My blog entries on this theme are logged under “Casa Lobo.”

10 Easy Steps for Becoming a Radical Homemaker

Commit to hanging your laundry out to dry.
Dedicate a portion of your lawn to a vegetable garden.
Get to know your neighbors. Cooperate to save money and resources.
Go to your local farmers' market each week before you head to the grocery store.
Do some spring cleaning to identify everything in your home that you absolutely don’t need. Donate to help others save money and resources.
Make a commitment to start carrying your own reusable bags and use them on all your shopping trips.
Choose one local food item to learn how to preserve for yourself for the winter.
Get your family to spend more evenings at home, preferably with the TV off.
Cook for your family.
Focus on enjoying what you have and who are with. Stop fixating on what you think you may need, or how things could be better "if only."

I don't claim radical homemaking is for everyone, but, I think it's worth trying if you've got a good community of support and don't mind reflecting on the vulnerabilities that come with taking a less travelled road.

header photo | detail 11-2013-3 by Bill Williams | Creative Commons License: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0