Article #271 Too Many Options

             Most Americans are faced with too many options whether it’s in what to eat, which show to watch or video game to buy. We tend to be a materialistic society, those of us who have jobs and a family to support. Then there are those with few options other than surviving because of unemployment, health issues or other challenges. Third world countries fill our newscasts with scenes of starving children, riots and social upheavals that limit choices for those families and individuals. Our own cities in America are filled with homeless hopeless people with no options, struggling to get by day after day.

            Is the goal of life to acquire more and more of the abundance of life’s goods or to reach out and share our wealth with other less fortunate in our society? Periodic floods, tornados and disasters can bring out the charitable side of prosperous citizens as they reach out with time and services to help others. Unfortunately, it takes a disaster or joblessness sometimes to bring home the reality of simpler values like shelter, food and security needs being appreciated.

            There’s nothing like having an electrical outage to bring us back to less advanced times where we provided our own entertainment, grew our own food, etc. It amazing how popular the show Survivor is. I wonder why? Perhaps, because we all wonder if we could survive without shelter, finding our own food, making do with what nature provides us. Few of us know how to garden, build a simple shelter, etc.

            Simpler days had their value. Teaching basic skills: how to build, repair, cook, clean and entertain ourselves was not a game but necessary for real SURVIVAL. We’ve become a society of consumers who greedily demand more and more choices not giving thanks for what we have. Many don’t believe in a higher power who gives us values and purpose for life. Too many choose a selfish existence centered on getting more and being better than others.

            A call to return to old fashioned values in our day would be met with strong resistance by those who demand equality and freedom at any cost. We’ve lost our sense of community and service to one another that was part of small town America in the good old days. Time to SIMPLIFY? Get back to basic choices-honest work, family unity and religious value or moral standards to follow. NEXT TIME: Trash, Garbage and Recycling.