Simply Complicated

I love gadgets and all things computer related. I was an early adopter of cell phone technology, and I anxiously look forward to the opportunity to upgrade my cell phone every two years. Thankfully, that’s part of my contract with Verizon and the upgrade comes at little or no cost. I also thoroughly enjoy my camera equipment, and have been known to nurture dreams of having the best and brightest gadgets available for preserving images for posterity.

Strangely, I’ve also often been attracted to a very simple life as well. I have thought that it would be great to move to the mountains and live in a simple log cabin, raising my own vegetables and maybe a chicken or two. The memory of how much sweat I spilled hoeing in the family garden in summers past is usually enough to bring me back to reality.

When I lived in Illinois, I visited a Trappist monastery in Iowa several times on retreat. Rising in the pre-dawn hours to pray with the monks, sharing their simple meals, and spending long hours in quiet contemplation are still some of my fondest memories. It was a time of renewal and shedding the stress of every day life. In those times, there were no cell phones, no Internet, and a break from television news. I didn’t forget about the real world, I just took a break from it.

Almost daily, there are news stories about new health issues that threaten Americans. Obesity is a huge issue for many adults, teens and young children, with epidemic growth of the problem. The H1N1 flu virus continues to threaten the elderly and the very young. And despite a growth in awareness of the need to stay physically fit, technology continues to provide new ways to make work easier and less taxing on workers. Many of these problems are exacerbated by the technological advances that require us to expend less energy to accomplish tasks, or the advances that allow us to move easily and quickly around the globe.

I think my attraction to a simpler life is a reaction to all that I see wrong in our world. Greed and selfishness can be found at the root of much that humankind struggles with today. There is a desire to accumulate more “stuff” no matter how much we already have. I think most of us think that if we accumulate enough we will find the key to happiness. My experience is telling me that the truth of the matter is that the exact opposite is true.

Trying to find happiness through the material goods I acquire actually leaves me feeling empty and unfulfilled. As I get the latest and greatest electronic gadget into my possession, the yearning for that is replaced by a new yearning to get the next great improvement on what I already have. It’s a never-ending cycle.

Someone once told me that if my goal in life was to be happy I would end up disappointed. Happiness is the result of accomplishing goals in life and being able to share those accomplishments in relationships that we treasure. In approaching life with this philosophy a person is more likely to have a healthy appreciation for the good things that come their way.

As I get older, I’m more open to the idea that life would be better if it were more simple. It will take time and work to develop a willingness to turn loose of things that are not that important in my life. I may not ever get to the point where I’ll give up all worldly things as a Trappist monk does. But I think there is plenty of room for growth even if the changes I make are small.

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