@MasalaBai They literally go about enjoying their lives without chasing internet clout. Genuinely happy people (trad or not trad) simply do not post about their lives for external validation. They just do their thing. I can't believe this even needs to be said.
Vacation culture has gotten a little out of control to me.
I live in southeast Tennessee, in the woods with my family and my dogs, and most of the time I do not have this huge itch to leave. We travel every now and then, but there is something really nice about actually enjoying the life you already have.
People act like you’re supposed to always be planning the next trip, the next flight, the next escape.
Then half the time you come home tired, behind, and wondering why you spent all that money to need a vacation from the vacation.
America is huge. Especially where I live, I can drive a few hours and see mountains, rivers, small towns, lakes, back roads, and some of the prettiest places in the country.
But honestly, some of my favorite days are just being home with my dogs, my family, the woods, and nowhere we have to be.
That feels like rest to me.
It was always an awkward moment when someone needed the red bat.
“Yeah, Billy, you can play but you gotta use the red bat.”
“But I wanna use the yellow bat like everybody else.”
“Motherfucker, you went 0-for-46 yesterday. The yellow bat is no longer an option for you.”
Some couples don’t downsize because they raised happy, functional kids who gave them grandkids, & when everyone gets together the space is very much used & needed.
I have no ancestors known to me that arrived after 1776 and I’ve done extensive family history (much of which I post on my account).
I am not rare, this is normal for Southerners. We are not related to the Ellis Island folks.
Normalize a boring life. Go to bed early, read long books, drink tea, regulate your nervous system, spend time alone, take walks without headphones, eat simple food, shrink your circle, and turn down the noise. Peace will look boring to people addicted to chaos, but that’s the point. Life doesn’t have to be loud to be meaningful, and it doesn’t have to be public to be powerful. Sometimes the magic is in being unreachable, rested, focused, and quietly becoming someone nobody can disturb.