Learning To Appreciate The Little Things In Life
I was reading a special report on the global economy in the Economist magazine today. One particular headline caught my eyes: "More of everything - Does the world have enough resources to meet the growing needs of the emerging economies?" The opening paragraph that followed the aforesaid headline is as follows: "The average income of the 5.5 billion people on this planet who live in emerging economies has been growing at a cracking pace: an annual rate of over 5% in recent years. As people grow richer, they want more cars and household appliances as well as better homes and roads. This, in turn, means a huge increase in the demand for energy and raw materials."
I see an underlying assumption in the aforesaid statements: when people grow richer, they want to consume more. Here we see one negative consequence of increased consumerism - a strain on the natural environment. A more serious drawback of unrestrained growth in consumerism is that it could take away our appreciation and joy in the simple things of life. Many people have told me that life gets more complicated as we grow older. I have been reflecting on that statement for a long time now. It is true that our responsibilities seem to increase as we grow older, and there are more things that we need to juggle around in life. However, I think increased responsibilities and challenges in life do not mean that we have to sacrifice the joy of simplicity in our lives. It is all a matter of perspective, and learning to appreciate the little things in life. Life does not get more complicated because we have more responsibilities, but only when we lose sight of the foundational building blocks of life and the capacity to find contentment and joy in the little things in life. Life gets complicated when we allow ourselves to be envious of what we do not have rather than enjoying what we already have; it gets complicated when we focus on the differences in our relationships rather than the common values that we share; it gets complicated when we spend our time worrying about the things that we cannot control rather than working on the things that are within our control.
The author George Bird Evans made an interesting observation: "I think we are drawn to dogs because they are the uninhibited creatures we might be if we weren't certain we knew better. They fight for honor at the first challenge, make love with no moral restraint, and they do not for all their marvelous instincts appear to know about death. Being such wonderfully uncomplicated beings, they need us to do their worrying."
Just to end today's reflection, I think it is important to observe that simplicity should not be confused with simplisticity. As the scientist Albert Einstein puts it: "Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler." We can find joy in simplicity, but when we begin to use it as an excuse for not exercising our intellect, engaging in industrious conduct or defending right moral values, then it is no longer the attitude of simplicity that leads to joy within our souls, but rather an attitude of over-simplisticity that turns a blind eye to the realities of the world, and which will surely lead to ruin eventually.
I see an underlying assumption in the aforesaid statements: when people grow richer, they want to consume more. Here we see one negative consequence of increased consumerism - a strain on the natural environment. A more serious drawback of unrestrained growth in consumerism is that it could take away our appreciation and joy in the simple things of life. Many people have told me that life gets more complicated as we grow older. I have been reflecting on that statement for a long time now. It is true that our responsibilities seem to increase as we grow older, and there are more things that we need to juggle around in life. However, I think increased responsibilities and challenges in life do not mean that we have to sacrifice the joy of simplicity in our lives. It is all a matter of perspective, and learning to appreciate the little things in life. Life does not get more complicated because we have more responsibilities, but only when we lose sight of the foundational building blocks of life and the capacity to find contentment and joy in the little things in life. Life gets complicated when we allow ourselves to be envious of what we do not have rather than enjoying what we already have; it gets complicated when we focus on the differences in our relationships rather than the common values that we share; it gets complicated when we spend our time worrying about the things that we cannot control rather than working on the things that are within our control.
The author George Bird Evans made an interesting observation: "I think we are drawn to dogs because they are the uninhibited creatures we might be if we weren't certain we knew better. They fight for honor at the first challenge, make love with no moral restraint, and they do not for all their marvelous instincts appear to know about death. Being such wonderfully uncomplicated beings, they need us to do their worrying."
Just to end today's reflection, I think it is important to observe that simplicity should not be confused with simplisticity. As the scientist Albert Einstein puts it: "Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler." We can find joy in simplicity, but when we begin to use it as an excuse for not exercising our intellect, engaging in industrious conduct or defending right moral values, then it is no longer the attitude of simplicity that leads to joy within our souls, but rather an attitude of over-simplisticity that turns a blind eye to the realities of the world, and which will surely lead to ruin eventually.
posted by Terry at 8:28 PM
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