Simplicity

Outdoor survival says you need food, water, air, shelter and a positive mental attitude. One can break that down in many ways, but it all boils down to the same thing: All the extra is not necessary.

I lived in Thailand for nearly a month in a village with few comforts as we know them. In America, when you ask children what "thneeds" they have in their lives (as taken from the Dr. Suess book called "The Lorax") they will mention things like multiple televisions, PS2's, XBox 360's and even cell phones (these kids are 10-11 years of age). I did not ask the children of Nayao Village what theirs might be, but I would imagine they may have answers that would challenge our very way of life here in the cushy U.S. of A.

Speaking of The Lorax, I came across this rebuttal to the book by the logging industry that I found to be rather interesting.

How lucky we are to have things like chairs with cushions and brand new clothes of any kind that we did not have to make ourselves. Let alone that the majority of us do not have to work to support our families at the age of 13. Even the poorest of our nation have so much more than the richest in a village like Nayao.

Take myself for example. To American standards, I do not live very highly on the economic scale. I live at my job in a 100 year-old farmhouse that is consistently inhabited by box elder bugs and mice. I do, however, make a living that is supporting me in what I need, comfortable things to sit and sleep on, a computer, a cell phone, access and the means to obtain any reasonable goods I could need. The luxury of eating out in restaurants and going out with friends for a drink. The ability to go out to concerts, a running vehicle, the right to vote, a safe atmosphere, plenty of food, a good education...the list of luck goes on and on.

Now one can argue that what makes me happy may not coincide with what makes the villagers of Nayao happy, and there is certainly truth to this. The major fact though, is that I have all the basic necessitites of life, and do not struggle for them. In addition to this, I ALSO have access to things that do enrich my life, regardless of what those are.

Simplicity seems to be much more simple to acheive than we seem to realize. Yet here I am typing on my personal computer in my cozy bedroom...it's only fair to recognize.