Helps

The life I live is one of pretty vast convenience. It's comfortable, enjoyable, and not really all that stressful (I mean, I've got my moments, but on the whole, it's not too bad). Life is this convenient because of scientific advancements and social efforts that have produced a society where it is considered unhealthy to never have downtime for simple enjoyment and pursuit of hobbies. Back in YE OLDE TIMES you barely had time to pursue a basic social life aside from making a living unless you were royalty of some sort. Now, we middle-class citizens live better than any traditional royalty ever did. Isn't that interesting? The saying that you would "live like royalty" would, at least for me, be a decrease in the enjoyability of my lifestyle. 

Don't get me wrong, though, there are some things that I really could do without. Some things are just so inordinately complex and difficult. Taxes. The Drivers License Division. Most banks. So while my life is pretty darn good, it's not perfect. I'm not complaining, mind you, I really appreciate most of the helps that I have in my day to day routine. Standard availability of running water is a big one. Indoor plumbing. Electricity. Computers, smart phones, TV and movies and game systems and cars and roads and sophisticated buildings... The list goes on. Even down to stuff like music notation software that makes writing music available even if you haven't attended years upon years of university and trained under one of the great composers. But there are some things that take it too far. At least for me.

But could we all do with a little simplification to bring the simple joys back into our lives? I used to get such a huge thrill out of sitting down for an hour and writing a simple song, or a poem or short story, or working on a chapter for a book that no one would ever read. A simple joy in creating. Where did that go? And when? It's a joy I've been rediscovering in the past few weeks, and I think I've missed it more than I'll readily let on. So my simplification? Stop trying to find movies to occupy my time, or spending every spare moment playing a video game or browsing the Internet in search of a highly elusive 'good time'. I'm gonna spend those times writing. I'm gonna spend those time's reading. I'm gonna sit and ponder more. I'm moving backward in time a little ways. And guess what.

I'm excited.