It seems that as I get older I become more demanding...

...though what I increasingly demand is simplicity.

Simple food, plucked fresh from the garden or sourced locally, prepared with love and enjoyed to the full with no faddiness, no chemicals, no guilt. Simple human contact, sharing experiences with loved ones, like-minded people and family. The simple enjoyment of nature, watching the sparrows in the garden feeding their young, the ripening fruit growing in our first garden together, watching the sea crash onto the shore, hearing the crackle as it pulls back over the pebbles.

I am in constant pursuit of the luxuries in life...

...though the luxuries I crave are not diamonds - I wear silver jewellery which cost no more than a few pounds per item. Neither are they shiny new cars - my aim is a life where I would not need a car at all. Nor are they en-suite bathrooms or wedding gifts, the trappings of material, superficial luxury. I am coming to realise that the true luxuries in life are, quite simply, time and space. The time to live your life in a way which would make you happy. The space required to do so.

I am always striving for success...

... though the success I seek will not be found on the corporate ladder, by the achievement of my so-called "Key Result Areas", promotions or increases in salary. My success depends upon my finally achieving balance and inner peace in my life. The balance of working only in order to gain the resources required to really live. The inner peace attained once the balance is found.

I want so much, and yet so little.