Over the past few years I have felt myself evolving, or as some may see it, regressing. Let me try to explain. I am basically “retired”. This retirement was not planned, but due to unforeseen life circumstances, retirement basically just happened. It’s all for the better.

I’ve spent most of my adult life running balls out trying to make a client happy. Pulling all-nighters creating ads to get people to buy something they did not need. Being part of a team. It was all fun and games. Then it all stopped. No more balls out. No more all nighters. No more teams. Adjustment is ongoing. Life is different. It’s slower. It’s a mind game. It’s better. Something I think you need to experience to fully understand.

Let’s get back to my evolution, shall we. My wife and I split our time between the city of Montreal and the countryside. We spend most of the time in the countryside because that is where our main residence is located. Most people live in the city and have a cottage or cabin outside of the city so they can get away. For us, it’s the opposite.

During our time living in the countryside I’ve spent a lot of time observing how the locals live. I interact with them the best I can given my limited grasp of the French language to better understand their culture. Trying to adapt their way of life into mine. Hanging out with them and helping them with projects in an effort to learn. The main thing I’ve learned is, they make do with what they have. And now, so do I.

When it’s maple syrup season, you make maple syrup. You don’t run to the store and buy it. If you have a clean empty 55 gallon barrel, you use it to harvest rain water for gardening. Or in our case, flushing the toilet at our little cabin. If a tree is blown over by the wind, you cut it up to use as fire wood for heating your home or making maple syrup. If there are dead or dying evergreen trees, you make plank boards out them to build a shed or to repair a broken board. Need to replace a foundation pillar? Use a tree you cut down. Need a new handrail for the stairway? Use a branch from a fallen tree. Need to keep the smell down in your outhouse? Throw some saw dust over each fresh pile. Out here nothing seems to go to waste. Buying something new is the last option, not the first. We make do with what we have. I understand that these types of examples are not possible for everyone. But, if you look around you for a solution rather than buying one, I think you’d be surprised at what is possible.

In a world where everyone appears to be trying to buy happiness, maybe we should all stop consuming just to consume. Maybe, we should just make do.

Making Do