A Simpler Life

 

A friend asked me recently why I haven't written anything in my blog for a long while.  I was quiet for a moment as I tried to articulate why I have felt the ennui that has blocked me from writing.  I somehow believed that by writing, I could express what seemed rational to me.  What I have learned is that rationality is overrated.  Truth has become a value-less commodity.  Ultimately, I think I just surrendered the belief that I could have any effect.  I've been around for 75 years, and I can't remember a time when everything has seemed so complicated; so out of control.  We all keep telling ourselves that 'things are alright', but we know on some level that they aren't.  We have entered an era of misinformation and deception.

 

It's true that the political situation in America has perhaps been the biggest disrupter, leaving all of us anxious about the state of our democracy.  For all my life, I never worried about that.  It is terribly unnerving and frightening to become aware that the foundational tenet of our safety has been fractured and in danger of collapse at the hands of irrational politicians and others whose only God is money and power.  The most demoralizing effect of all this is the realization that a significant portion of my countrymen believe a lie so monstrous that loss of life is of no consequence to them.  A coup attempt and insurrection seems to not be a problem for a large minority of our population.  This is demoralizing to me.

 

But there is also the rise of authoritarianism in the rest of the world, the increasingly fragile economy of the world, and, most importantly, the ability of humanity to see what is going on everywhere all at once.  It becomes overwhelming.  In all of history up until the last several decades, our awareness of the immensity and complexity of human activity, and pervasiveness of human cruelty was veiled because our ability to see and hear about such things was limited by communication technology.  Now, our awareness is hyper-sensitized because our existence has morphed into uninterrupted screens of everything we want to know and everything we don't want to know about.

 

Perhaps our children can contend with this new reality because they are 'children of the screens', but we are not.  I do my best to stay connected and 'wired in', but it is really tiring for a brain born in the middle of the last century.  Information overload taxes the feeling of control that makes for a satisfying life.

 

As I contemplate the remaining years of my life, I have turned my attention to finding a place to live that is secluded and protected from the irrationality and complexity that seems to be all around us.  Our major populations centers are increasingly disorganized, violent and dangerous.  Density of population only seems to aggravate the confusion we are all feeling.  

 

So, the solution for me is to build a retreat in the mountains that will offer us solace and security.  Less people, simpler living style (with the advantage of instant communication) seems like the best alternative.  As I increasingly realize that there is little that I can do to influence the morphing of human society into something rather dystopian, the best solution is to focus on the meaning of my family, the people I love and a return to the natural rhythms of nature.  

 

I think therein lies the best option for my future.  So as my 'wa' quiets down, perhaps I will begin to comment on simpler things that become clear and have meaning.