Man should not consider his material possession his own, but as common to all, so as to share them without hesitation when others are in need. ~St. Thomas Aquinas
One rainy night, with the rain so loud, I found my self thinking, hoping, and wondering.
I was thinking about the amount of rain that was coming down. So much rain that I thought for sure there would be flooding. In the morning as I left my house I saw that there were still three large puddles of water I had to walk through to get to the main road.
I found myself hoping that the rain would not last too long so that the animals that have become weak from the lack of water and food would be able to withstand the heavy rains. I found myself hoping that the animals would be able to stay on or get to high enough grounds so that they would not be terribly affected by the streets flooding.
I found myself wondering what would happen if the rains would not cease. How much damage would there be? Will the roads become impassable? Would all the roads flood to the point where I would not be able to leave my house to go to work? Would I be able even to get to a local store for basic supplies - i.e. food, candles, matches.
As I found myself wondering, I began to wonder what I would do if my house was flooded. I really don't have too many material items - which means if my house did get flooded a lot of the things I have would be safe.
This thought process lead to another thought: 'I am doing quite well right now and I don't really have a lot of material things. I can actually see myself living the rest of my days in this manner - just the basics and very few luxuries.'
Maybe I'm just being too idealistic, but I really don't feel like I need a lot of material things to live a comfortable life.
I look forward to the days when I was my laundry by hand; I look forward to eating my super on the floor watching a movie or reading the news; I really enjoy the peacefulness that comes with having such few material things.
When I return to the states hopefully I will be able to continue this lifestyle of simplicity.
I mostly agree. I love the simplicity and informality of this life. I like that it is acceptable to eat with my hands and that I teach some of my lessons in a mud shack. Still, when I go back home, I will be using a washing machine. My knuckles would never forgive me if I didn't.
ReplyDelete