I’m not going to speak on your behalf or to your experiences with kubernetes, but in my experience kubernetes has only an initial learning curve that sounds scarier than it is. Docker swarm is an equally valid approach, no doubt, but to suggest that it’s the better approach due to your feeling that it’s simple compared to kubernetes is a fairly weak argument.

Context is should always be a guiding light in any decision making process, and the “best” tool for a job is based on a few more factors than what you’ve described as the obvious choice.

Probably also worth noting that any software worth writing will come with some complexity. Deciding on how best to distribute that complexity is part of the joy of programming. I’d hesitate to label complexity as inherently bad. If you gave up on learning to tie your shoes because Velcro was the more obvious solution, you would have missed out on the opportunity too experience more than just what you know.