Does the concept of simplicity demand that I live without these things? Look, simplicity doesn’t mean I go to the mountain cave and escape the world. The world of commerce forces me to participate in it. Simplicity is taking the middle path. There is nothing wrong with entertainment and jumping into the mosh-pit for a good slam dance every once in a while… participation in society requires a certain amount of release.
I have needs though; a roof over my head; some food on my table; some clothes on my back. Those are the material things I need, however, there are a few more that verge on the material but have a spiritual basis. I do need love and love means that I have to get in the mix. I’ve tried to live without love and it doesn’t work. I have found that I have to give it in order to receive it. When I speak of love I’m speaking of a deep seated need for fellowship of some kind. In order to be a productive part of any fellowship I have to have something to offer others. This requires that I have enough emotional stability to reach out and give a helping hand. For some it translates in material terms such as donating money for food and housing for the less fortunate. For others it means volunteering to help out in food kitchens or simply a kind word to someone who suffers.
Simplicity is about taking the most direct path to sanity. Accumulating stuff can be about diverting me from the path to this reality… the reality is that I do need others for my own sanity and this sanity requires that I find emotional balance. It can mean something as simple as looking up from my laptop or I-phone for one minute to ask, “Hello, how are you?” to the guy sitting next to you in the coffee-shop. That might be the most spiritual thing I will do that day.
Well, I don’t have an I-phone or a laptop but I do put a fence around myself with the daily crossword puzzle.
geo 5,158
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