I do not have very many regrets in life but one of them is that in college I did not follow my heart and major in communications rather than marketing. Not only did I despise several of the subjects required by the business school curriculum but I would have saved mucho dinero not retaking said courses due to poor grades in them. I am thinking specifically of Quantitative Statistics, which I failed not once but twice, yet aced the third time with a different teacher!

All of that is to say that upon closer reflection I am guessing we all have given in to pressure from peers, parents, or others to pursue a course of action contrary to our natural inclination or interest. And that is where simplifying our life and streamlining our stuff has liberated Linda and I to follow our passions on the journey of lifelong learning as we live and move more freely and lightly.

For example, we recently enjoyed a chamber music concert at the renowned Garth Newel Music Center (pictured above) here in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. While our love of classical music is not necessarily shared by either of our families or friends it is something we enjoy together, especially in such special settings. And it was at this concert that a conversation with fellow patrons sparked this blog post.

Allow me to explain. In the process of chatting with our neighbors, I had mentioned that I am a writer and photographer, the latter a profession shared by the couple’s daughter. So the husband asked Linda what type of work she does but before she could answer he caught himself and noted that the French consider it rude to ask one’s occupation, especially upon first meeting. Suffice it to say that we tend to agree with the French and try to act accordingly.

As bestselling author Joan Anderson writes, “I’m learning that what’s important is not so much what I do to make a living as who I become in the process.” And documentary filmmaker Ken Burns adds, “Our founders didn’t see ‘happiness’ as a pursuit of material wealth in a marketplace of things, but a celebration of lifelong learning in a marketplace of ideas” (emphasis mine). Amen!