The following is my opinion as a member participating in this discussion.
reply to post by silo13
And you think life is hard now? Try life living off the land. LOL. Then you’ll know what hard really is.
Yeah, it's hard. You're absolutely correct.
But there is a huge difference between 'hard' and 'impossible'.
The difference of opinion between yourself and the OP is based off of your differing perceptions of life. You are both correct, based on your own
perceptions of what life is to be like. I can see things from both perspectives, since I have been a businessman and yet was raised to be
self-sufficient.
Both lives are hard, but in different ways. As a member of modern society, one receives many rewards: entertainment, extended social interaction,
comforts, and free time. But in return for these rewards, one must fight the daily rat race of economics and business. Money becomes the primary goal
in life, for it is now money which allows one to survive in their environment. With the race for money comes mental stress; with mental stress comes
anxiety, worry, and a tendency for someone to be self-centered. Even worse, IMHO, is the tendency for everything in life to have a price tag
associated with it... even another human life.
Rural life is a bit different. Money is no longer a necessity to survive, but survival without it is harder physically. You awake at sunup to do the
things that must be done in order to have the things you need for survival. Your day doesn't end when the clock strikes 5:00; it ends when the sun
sets in the west and there is not enough light to see in order to work. Some of that work is physically strenuous; some of it is tedious and boring;
some of it is just plain dirty.
We all have a choice to make: which life will we choose? You apparently chose the former, and that is a fine decision. I am choosing the latter, also
a fine decision. Unlike a math class, there is no wrong answer here. The only wrong answer is denial that the alternative doesn't exist.
As to the old, the infirm, the weak... we in this alternate life have our own solution to this. It's called caring and compassion, and it is also the
reason I chose this life. I have a cousin who is mentally retarded; his mind is that of a six-year-old, although he is well into his 60s now. He lives
with his mother, who cares for him like any mother would care for a six-year-old. When I go by, he is always happy.
He works alongside his mother to take care of the house and garden. He does everything he can do to help out, and no one ever expects him to do
more.
Now one day his mother will pass on, but he still won't be homeless or uncared for. His brother will take him in. Should something happen to his
brother, his niece will take him in. There will always be someone willing to care for this man. Even I, should there be no one else, would take him
in.
In the city, he would be a ward of the State. He would have the things that make others comfortable, but how many times would he be scorned for being
a 'dummy'? Would he get the satisfaction of feeling that he really belongs somewhere? Would he understand that he is a valuable part of the
community, regardless of any shortcomings he may have? I would hope so, but I think not.
The same goes for the infirm and the elderly. They still tend to do what they can, but others from family and community always seem to show up and
take care of the rest. My mother is in ailing health right now, yet she still lives in her house. Should the day come when she can no longer take care
of herself, will we ship her off to a nursing home? That would seem to be the thing to do in the city. Instead, I have already declared my intentions
to care for her, for as long as it takes, to keep her dignity in those last days.
The gloom you ascribe to this simpler way of life is not as you imagine it. When removed from the self-centered hustle and bustle of urban or even
suburban life, people tend to form even tighter communities and take care of their fellow humans to a much greater extent.
TheRedneck
As an ATS Staff Member, I will not moderate in threads such as this where I have participated as a member.
