Wants and Needs

Reading an article in the latest issue of Countryside Magazine got me to thinking (dangerous territory there).  The article, Summer Days of Tranquility,  kind of talks about our wants compared to our needs.  It starts off with an Irish proverb:" A dog owns nothing, yet is seldom dissatisified."  How true this relates to our lives or might I say a way of life.  How much "stuff" do we accumulate over the years that we don't really need, but was more of an impulse thing.  See it on the shopping network and just have to have it.  We know some people that have done a lot of that over the years.  They have every kitchen gadget known to man, and some not known.  A good set of knives will also suffice at times.  The best one was the watermelon slicer.  Let me tell you a knife is faster.  Don't get me wrong, all of this stuff is nice, but is it really necesssary?  To them it is.  To us, not really.  We don't have a big enough house for much more than a set of knives and a good food processor.  At least the knives will still work without electricity!

Kids today seem to have to be entertained by someone all the time.  No imagination at all.  My opinion--too many computer games and too much TV.  No way to stretch the imagination.  It is all done for them.  We didn't have TV when I was a kid, but our days were filled with the fantasies of riding the range with Roy and Dale, Gene Autry, and of course my all time hero,  Hopalong Cassidy.  Then there was The  Lone Ranger and Tonto.  Many times we had to  defend the farm from Indian attacks. Many times the stagecoach was robbed nearby the farm.   Many WWII battles were fought in the backyard, complete with cannons made from two sizes of tin cans and firecrackers.  We only did that once.  Mom didn't think it was a good idea!  Our grenades were small wild gourds with fircrackers in them.  That one really got shut down.  Parachuting off of the windmill with a sheet as a parachute, was not a good idea either.   The point here is that we made everything.  We didn't need all the fancy toys that could have been bought at the five and dime.  They would have been ok, but the folks couldn't always afford them anyway.  On the occasions when we did get a toy, it was a big deal.  Our guns and knives were made from wood.  We made them ourselves.  We were never bored, as I hear some kids say today.  We were always busy getting into some kind of mischief.   If Dad heard us say we were bored, he would find something for us to do,  and believe me that definitely wasn't fun.

I guess life was simple then.  Maybe our parents didn't think so.  But it was a simpler time.  I don't think we needed as much.  Our basic comforts were less.  Saturday nite in town was the big deal.  Stores stayed open late.  Adults gathered together to visit,  weekly shopping was done.  More community closeness. 

I don't know how to end this.  I could ramble on and on, I guess.  Some of these thoughts came from the article, but are also things that I have pondered on.  The article ended with-"Is it possible that we have lost something over the years?  Might we look back and regain something lost?  I think so."    My thought here is --yes we have lost something over the years,  but  can it be regained.  It would be nice, but............

God bless All and God Bless America--johnnyb