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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Transition Lifestyles: Satisfaction

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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Transition Lifestyles: Satisfaction
  • Date: Sun, 05 Sep 2010 20:22:23 -0600


Then a more "grounded" lifestyle can mean working to produce the food we eat,
procure the clothes we wear, build or rework our shelter and so forth - all
work that contributes directly to our own needs and wellbeing - instead of
working for just money to pay someone else to provide those things for us.
There is such a profound satisfaction to find the confidence to do for
ourselves. You folks know this in your very being.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes.
--Henry David Thoreau
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********

On 9/5/2010 at 6:25 AM pbunch@cox.net wrote:

>Thank you so much for the responses so far, I hope there are more to
>come. Work as an integral part of life seems to be a thread which ties
>together all of these responses. If this is generalizable it is very
>significant. It really is not surprising in that many psychologists have
>worked on the problem of alienation and compartmentalization of "modern"
>life and found them to be harmful.
>
>One of the issues I have come across in the transition literature is the
>need to educate people to prosper with fewer material goods. The sense of
>satisfaction in life is one of the fundamental components of this kind of
>prosperity. Surviving would hardly be worthwhile if it meant living with a
>sense of constant drudgery and boredom.
>
>A related issue that may be worth chatting about is well-being and how we
>communicate it. It gets into the use of status symbols which of course
>will never go away but will change in a low consumption society. How do we
>tell people non-verbally who we are and that we are doing just fine, thank
>you? Smiles and facial expressions reflecting well-being are usually part
>of the package but we also generally use clothing, jewelry and other
>symbols that say I am this or that and have the power to own this or that.
>
>This group derives status as members of the living on the land listserve
>and through contributions to the list. We respect those that contribute
>useful information and their status increases as they help others. This
>appears to me to be a very healthy kind of prosperity. Membership in the
>group also provides the benefits of being recognized as a valued part of a
>community, sharing the benefits of knowledge, reaffirmation of beliefs,
>and other non-tangibles.
>
>An example of a symbol in the community where we are becoming integrated
>is rubber boots. People who work in this rather damp climate generally
>ware rubber boots as their work shoes. They are just a practical
>adaptation to the the realities of life. They do however immediately
>scream out " here is a campesino or at least a person who works outside
>and understands the realities of the countryside. As an unknown person I
>am immediately accepted on a different level when I'm walking down the
>trail in rubber boots. The greeting is likely to be "hello neighbor"
>rather than just "hello" or perhaps some non-verbal indication that I am
>being accepted as something other than a tourist (the most common kind of
>"outsider" in the area.)
>
>
>





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