NECESSITIES OF LIFE

The economic times have caused me to think about what are the real necessities of life. Some years ago, I read an article about what we think we needed 75 years ago and what we need today just to live. The list for today was about 10 times longer than it was years ago.

My grandparents lived in rural Arkansas when I was a child and their needs were minimal. They didn't have running water in the house or a bathroom. They raided chickens for eggs and food, milked their own cow and raised their own vegetables. They had no air-conditioning and no tv, had a party line for phone service and one pickup truck and seemed to have a lot more time to sit on the porch and talk with family and friends. Life was much less complicated and I know that they didn't feel deprived. I have a nice air-conditioned house, phones and cell phones, mp3 player, satellite televisions, internet, two air-conditioned vehicles, computer, GPS, a riding lawn mower,a bassboat with more electronics than a World War II battleship and lots of other STUFF. Life is good.

Then I ask myself what are the necessities of my life? What would I give up in order to simplify my life? That causes me to ask another question, what would the priorities be if I had to cut expenditures? The only things that I can come up with are: slower internet service, turn the heat down and the air up, change the light bulbs and turn them off when not in the room, and drop subscriptions to internet programs. That is not much, and I realize that I have a lot of necessities, or at least things that I think are necessities. That is not much progress, I need to work on this.