Deliberate Living

In March 1845, Henry David Thoreau received a letter from poet William Ellery Channing. “Build yourself a hut, & there begin the grand process of devouring yourself alive,” wrote Channing. “I see no other alternative, no other hope for you.”

That challenge was the catalyst for a two-year experiment in simple living that began on July 4, 1845…Moving into a tiny home on a piece of property owned by Ralph Waldo Emerson. For the record, minimalism is a grand gesture, especially in a culture addicted to consumerism. The…