Endless Pursuits

At a recent luncheon conversation with a seventy year old retiree who returned to the academic world, we talked about places that he had visited across the globe, from Alaska, to US, Europe, Africa and Asia. Perked by curiousity , I asked, "Out of so many places, which do you think is the best place to settle down?"

 

He peers at me through his bi-focal glasses, thinks for a while and answers, "You know, at the end of the day, when you're all old and wrinkled up like me, you'd still think that home, the place that you grew up in, is the best place to be."

 

Following which, he launched into a story-telling session, which I always love. So goes the story:

 

Once upon a time, there was a businessman who landed on an island. The villagers there were all fishermen, who fished in the night and rested in the day. They caught only what was sufficient for them to survive for three days up to a week. Fish was abundant, but they always only caught what was enough for themselves.

 

The businessman was confused. So, one day, he asked the fishermen, "Why don't you catch more fish?"

 

Baffled, the fishermen asked in return, "Why would we want to catch more fish?"

 

"To sell! To get more money of course!" replied the businessman.

 

The fisherment looked at each other and one asks, "And what would we do with all that money?"

 

"Well..." the businessman analyzes for them and explain enthusiastically, "You can use it to buy a bigger boat and catch more fish and sell it for more money in the city!'"

 

 "And what will we do after earning more money?"

 

"Ahh.. you could move to the city, stay in a bigger house."

 

"And what will we do once we move to the city?"

 

"You could earn even more money so you can buy bigger boats which could bring in more fish for you to sell and you'll get more, more money!"

 

"And what would we do with all that money?"

 

"Why?!" the businessman exclaims. "You can buy a nice house on an island where you spend the rest of your life in peace, leading a quiet and tranquil life."

 

"Ohh! Isn't that where we are living right now? So, why would we want to change our lifestyle?"

 

And all of them dispersed back to their own homes, living the same way that they had just as before.

 

As we scramble up career ladders and settle down into modern, sophisticated, metropolitan homes, we tend to forget that we can all survive with even the most basic and essential necessities - family, food and lodging.

That, is all we need.