We make choices, we decide what our priorities are, and we give up certain things to gain others. Adding more and more to our list of “have to’s” is killing us. Because if everything matters, then nothing matters. The beauty of life lies in its finitude—everything is fleeting, so everything is more precious. Living in light of that reality helps us to choose what matters most in each moment.
As Charles Mingus said: 'Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity.' Or E. F. Schumacker: 'Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius—and a lot of courage—to move in the opposite direction.' Hans Hofmann: 'The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.'
Simplification can be very elegant.
