- Joined
- Jan 7, 2003
- Messages
- 2,373
Someone much wiser than me once said, “You will never be content with what you get until you are content with what you have.” In other words, contentment is something you learn not something you buy.
Contentment is almost looked down upon today as if it is equated with “settling” or “making do”. It seems like it has to involve a dropping out of some process or stopping all progress forward. Understand I’m not trying to knock anyone here or any particular thread. We do spend a lot of time talking about what’s next or what’s best, and I am every bit as susceptible to the next big purchase. In fact it is here that I do a great deal of my own market research and this site has saved me a lot of money. Turning me on to Mora’s alone has saved me a bundle and increased my effectiveness and enjoyment of the wilderness. No, you can't/won't buy just one.
I have noticed with certain pieces of gear that I have used long term that they take on a characteristic that the next big thing will never match. Trust, habit, the fact that those items were with me when… or solved a problem for me, all seem to work together to make these things more like old friends than just a good piece of kit. I have even retired a few items because the emotional value far outstrips the market value of the piece of kit.
Likewise I love a good adventure and nobody has been bitten with the travel bug as bad as me. I love a new place and to find out what is over the next hill. At the same time certain places have grown to be a part of me, just being there seems to hit my reset button like no other place. They put me in my element. Mere travel will never be the same as going home.
I think sometimes that we as people loose sight of contentment and what it can give us while we search for the better or more exotic. Some of the things that give me the most contentment are dirt simple, like my gloves. I just know that if I have that ratty pair of leather roper gloves in my left thigh pocket that I am having a good day.
The best friends are the ones who have been with you the longest. Choose your friends wisely. Just something to think about… Mac
Edited to add: As a kid I used to hate weeding the garden, my parents used it as punishment. Unruly boys were condemned to weed the garden. Now anytime I find myself ripping up a patch of grass to make my bed I realize I have a good life.
Contentment is almost looked down upon today as if it is equated with “settling” or “making do”. It seems like it has to involve a dropping out of some process or stopping all progress forward. Understand I’m not trying to knock anyone here or any particular thread. We do spend a lot of time talking about what’s next or what’s best, and I am every bit as susceptible to the next big purchase. In fact it is here that I do a great deal of my own market research and this site has saved me a lot of money. Turning me on to Mora’s alone has saved me a bundle and increased my effectiveness and enjoyment of the wilderness. No, you can't/won't buy just one.
I have noticed with certain pieces of gear that I have used long term that they take on a characteristic that the next big thing will never match. Trust, habit, the fact that those items were with me when… or solved a problem for me, all seem to work together to make these things more like old friends than just a good piece of kit. I have even retired a few items because the emotional value far outstrips the market value of the piece of kit.
Likewise I love a good adventure and nobody has been bitten with the travel bug as bad as me. I love a new place and to find out what is over the next hill. At the same time certain places have grown to be a part of me, just being there seems to hit my reset button like no other place. They put me in my element. Mere travel will never be the same as going home.
I think sometimes that we as people loose sight of contentment and what it can give us while we search for the better or more exotic. Some of the things that give me the most contentment are dirt simple, like my gloves. I just know that if I have that ratty pair of leather roper gloves in my left thigh pocket that I am having a good day.
The best friends are the ones who have been with you the longest. Choose your friends wisely. Just something to think about… Mac
Edited to add: As a kid I used to hate weeding the garden, my parents used it as punishment. Unruly boys were condemned to weed the garden. Now anytime I find myself ripping up a patch of grass to make my bed I realize I have a good life.
