The Bald Eagles I saw two days ago are beginning to make me believe that true freedom has little to do with money.
America is a country of "stuff accumulation". The more stuff we accumulate, the more worried we become that we may lose it and the more work we do to preserve the stuff.
Is that freedom?
Managing money can be an overwhelming and time consuming process demanding hours of office time everyday.
Is that freedom?
Not that I am particularly religious, but aren't money and stuff man's creations and the wonders of nature and the beauty of the earth and heavens God's creations.
How free do we feel when we visit our stuff vs when we visit God's stuff?
Karen and I spent 2 wonderful years traveling the country in a 8'x31' camper. We visited many National Parks, State Parks, historical sites, old battlegrounds, and dozens of museums. We had everything we needed and more in that 248 SF of camper. When we first contemplated that trip, I recalled the years I spent traveling the world for months at a time with one SF mountain rucksack. It too held everything I needed. That recollection convinced me the camper would suffice and it did.
Today, my 15'x18' bedroom is 10% bigger than the old camper, and I could not pack my stuff into two hundred rucksacks.
Does that make me free?
The Bald Eagle sighting is making me think. They live and travel outdoors everyday in the most beautiful natural surroundings. They eat well, mate for life, have sex often, make a home site wherever they wish, and move whenever they want.
Eagles are missing a lot of stuff. They don't have alcohol or drugs. They don't own TVs. They don't have retirement accounts. They don't have roofs that need patching. They don't have grass that needs cutting. They don't have shrinks. They don't even have a rucksack.
So why do I find the Eagles so fascinating?
It is because they have maintained the freedom to live within God's wonders, while us humans strive to accumulate more of man's stuff.
I have heard the phrase "Fly With Eagles" often in my life. Two days ago, I learned what it means. I am ready to fly, but what the hell should I do with all this stuff?
Mike |
