[3] Simple, authentic living is the best way

• [3.1] Being satisfied with who one is and what one has

 
• [3.1.1] Discerning essential and sufficient need and finding gratitude in meeting it
 
• [3.1.1.1] True needs are better appreciated when divested of frivolous wants and pointless pursuit

 
• [3.1.1.1.1] Greater attention to a smaller set of concerns can make them easier to appreciate
 
5 January 1998 -- A life with limits and restraint
24 October 1998 -- Slowing down and taking a closer look
26 April 1999 -- Finally able to go outside
7 February 2000 -- Accepting the proper burden
11 October 2001 -- Towards the minimal load
27 July 2002 -- A search for the center
 
• [3.1.1.1.2] It is a difficult job sometimes to determine and appreciate what is truly "needed"

 
• [3.1.1.1.2.1] The extent of a need and that which satisfies vary according to situation and context
 
• [3.1.1.1.2.1.1] When these governing factors are fully accepted, the job of compliance is simplified
 
18 September 1999 -- The anticipation of change
16 April 2000 -- The makings of further growth
9 December 2000 -- Aware of the true landscape
21 January 2001 -- The active efforts continue
28 July 2001 -- Responding to the unavoidable
5 December 2001 -- It's all good enough
10 March 2002 -- Attending to further necessities
16 December 2002 -- The problem of satisfaction
 
• [3.1.1.1.2.1.2] Civilized life and its complexity impose a good many arbitrary, conflicting and ill-defined demands
 
3 October 1997 -- The fulfillment first of true need
14 May 2000 -- Many options are open
27 September 2000 -- An impression, warm and bright
13 February 2001 -- A brief visit to the same old place
13 August 2001 -- The necessity of the lesser
18 December 2001 -- Adjustments in my cover
12 January 2003 -- Called to duty, before the fire
22 September 2003 -- The necessity of exposure
 
• [3.1.1.1.2.2] Needs are often observed and satisfied indirectly, and not through explicit pursuit

 
5 January 1999 -- A most personal evening's visitation
15 October 1999 -- Weighing the evidence
10 July 2000 -- The standard schedule unfolds
7 September 2000 -- Problems and their solution
1 January 2001 -- A position of questionable authority
15 April 2001 -- Signs of a worthwhile wait
25 August 2001 -- Not sure of what's next
2 December 2001 -- The call to sufficiency
29 December 2002 -- In pursuit of what is high
3 February 2003 -- The truth of good and bad
28 February 2003 -- Waiting out my passage
 
• [3.1.1.2] Many of life's essentials are taken for granted because they come too easily
 
17 August 1997 -- Appreciation of simple sufficiency
19 March 1998 -- Seeking out the basics
5 February 1999 -- Moving along into another day
17 February 1999 -- Waiting for joy's return

• [3.1.2] Becoming settled into a realistic plan of long-term priority and commitment
 
• [3.1.2.1] Unwavering perseverance through hard times in a single place or situation

 
• [3.1.2.1.1] Stability and constancy are an edifying and reassuring factor in any life

 
3 September 1997 -- Settled in this single place
24 November 1997 -- Commitment to a single place and way
15 June 2000 -- Enjoying a moment's rest
2 August 2000 -- The forward motion continues
1 December 2000 -- Settling in for some weather
10 December 2001 -- Settling in for the arrival
30 May 2002 -- The necessity of the new approach
26 August 2002 -- A properly bestowed rest
 
• [3.1.2.1.2] Suffering is so unavoidable that it is easier to endure when accepted in a larger scheme
 
11 March 1999 -- Staying put for the moment
19 October 1999 -- Life in the cold
29 July 2000 -- The inevitablity of a limited life
9 January 2001 -- Sufficiently supplementing my reality
16 March 2001 -- No choice but to endure
24 November 2001 -- The happiness I hope for
31 March 2003 -- Life within the light
 
• [3.1.2.1.3] A view towards better times to come makes the hard times livable

 
1 January 1999 -- Progressing through emptiness
29 January 1999 -- Continued life in the barren stillness
26 August 1999 -- Not much else to do tonight
13 December 2000 -- Asking questions of the silence
31 March 2001 -- Enduring the inevitable journey
21 May 2001 -- A day for hanging on
11 February 2002 -- A fair vision on a cold day
 
• [3.1.2.2] Making choices that further the pursuit of one's optimal mission in life

 
• [3.1.2.2.1] Indeed, much more of the choice is mine than appearances suggest

 
• [3.1.2.2.1.1] Reaching maturity establishes a new endowment of and approach to personal freedom
 
24 June 1998 -- The rules of freedom
22 November 1999 -- The day's activities begin
6 August 2000 -- A permissible revision of plans
5 February 2001 -- A unified yet diverse progression
2 June 2001 -- Life under my own authority
21 September 2001 -- Artistry from predictability
28 November 2001 -- Making ready for the night
20 January 2002 -- Possession despite loss
 
• [3.1.2.2.1.2] This freedom, however, can often be a wearisome burden, filled with painful indecision and doubt
 
3 September 1999 -- Going over my plans
25 January 2000 -- A time for holding out
18 August 2000 -- A creation that will endure
1 May 2001 -- A proper yet unseen way
9 August 2001 -- Returning to a basic existence
31 December 2001 -- I've done enough for today
25 January 2003 -- The question of what is next
29 April 2003 -- The mastery of the worker
31 August 2003 -- Scanning about, at the root
2 October 2003 -- Nowhere, really, to go

• [3.1.2.2.1.3] Undermining the exercise of one's free will are false illusions of duty and a yearning to believe in external control
 
19 June 1999 --  Another precious ration of free time
29 February 2000 -- A hint of what's ahead
26 July 2000 -- Preparing for another day
1 October 2000 -- The promise of probability
4 April 2001 -- The plot begins to emerge
17 August 2001 -- An exercise of privilege
25 March 2002 -- The question of occupation
21 July 2002 -- The fullness expected of me
19 January 2003 -- A time of partial darkness

• [3.1.2.2.2] Typical in such choices are cooperative efforts with others; embracing the greater overall good
 
2 February 1998 -- Held in place for the moment
26 May 1999 -- Straining to hear my next assignment
18 July 1999 -- Searching for proper appreciation
20 August 1999 -- Taking another "time out"
29 October 2000 -- In need of a burden that is light
8 April 2001 -- All is well, under the sun
22 June 2001 -- Participating in this day
13 September 2001 -- A division to be respected
17 March 2003 -- Those necessary duties

• [3.2] Living with problems that can be directly seen; straightforward action with minimal hesitation

 
30 August 1997 -- Choosing a different set of obstacles
23 October 1997 -- The increasing specialization of labor
5 November 1997 -- The judicious use of technology
7 March 1998 -- Striving for simple joys
23 March 1998 -- The real life I did not choose
19 December 1998 -- Meeting the indisputable basics
6 April 1999 -- Limiting the scope of my efforts
19 February 2002 -- A passage that is guaranteed
 
• [3.3] Finding beauty and authenticity in natural surroundings and events

 
• [3.3.1] Sensory impressions obtained in the wild are themselves refreshing

 
8 December 1997 -- The uniform colors of desolation
8 April 1998 -- The sense of spring
15 May 1998 -- Out in the sun
3 December 1998 -- A full moon tonight
18 March 1999 --  A steady wind has appeared
30 March 1999 -- Returning upstream to camp
18 June 2001 -- Progressing into the night
11 May 2002 -- The many sounds of the earth
 
• [3.3.2] Spending time outside of human constructs promotes an awareness of an intriniscally "correct" way
 
• [3.3.2.1] Life in the wild suggests a vibrancy that is well applied to the furtherance of often-dulled city living
 
15 March 1998 -- A new season begins to show
20 February 1999 -- The terrain is slowly illuminated
10 April 1999 -- Standing in the stillness for now
5 May 2001 -- Securely held in place
18 April 2002 -- The eminence that is life
18 April 2003 -- A participant in the flow
 
• [3.3.2.2] Experience of the natural world and its offerings is often frustrated by the demands of human expediency
 
17 November 1997 -- Stepping out to appreciate the morning
27 March 1998 -- Replenishing my supply
5 November 1998 -- Settling into a slower day
24 March 2000 -- Adrift in the ways of habit
8 March 2001 -- A gradual yet certain progress
30 June 2001 -- A return to proper basics
14 April 2002 -- A man in basic condition
1 May 2002 -- A peculiar position
 
• [3.4] Attending to one matter at a time, in its proper time, within the overall "big picture"

 
• [3.4.1] Prospective tasks and courses of action must adhere to certain standards of appropriateness and timeliness
 
• [3.4.1.1] There is difficulty sometimes in discerning and accepting what is "right"
 
• [3.4.1.1.1] When correct and proper judgment prevails, a more efficient and satisfying outcome will result
 
20 April 1998 -- This is not the time
13 December 1999 -- Routine life for another day
26 May 2000 -- A satisfying insignificance
5 December 2000 -- Responding to a recurrent scene
27 March 2001 -- The same old light, seen anew
19 October 2001 -- Warm and assuredly right
8 November 2001 -- A fabrication of certain value
2 April 2002 -- Towards the favored pose
14 June 2002 -- Evening's gradual approach
19 September 2002 -- The mostly-hidden path
24 March 2003 -- The immutable blessing
16 May 2003 -- In search of the center
19 April 2004 -- Awhile in the watershed

• [3.4.1.1.2] A proper balance must be reached between what one wills and what one accepts

 
3 March 1998 -- Desolation, yet with hope
25 July 1999 -- Facing the truth of pain
1 April 2000 -- Living out another day
22 July 2000 -- Life itself can be enough
9 February 2001 -- A necessarily lesser day
29 September 2001 -- A calculated hesitation
22 March 2002 -- Endeavoring to let go
10 June 2004 -- A conscious effort

• [3.4.1.2] When life is sufficiently simplified, the right actions become more evident
 
6 February 1998 -- All things coming to pass
18 August 1998 -- Trying to let go
13 January 1999 -- Trying to find an answer
16 January 2000 -- Further consideration of myself
27 April 2001 -- Towards the optimal objective
7 October 2001 -- That central awareness
23 December 2001 -- An opportunity for peace
15 February 2002 -- Towards the basic way
2 March 2002 -- Not much I can really do
5 July 2002 -- Not expecting a lot today
 
• [3.4.2] The fullest attention and devotion should be given to the present, at-hand concern
 
• [3.4.2.1] Excessive and unnecessary distraction come from considerations outside the present situation
 
• [3.4.2.1.1] This is a problem characteristic of adult urban priorities and overload

 
1 January 1998 -- Kept inside by the cold and snow
17 October 1998 -- Narrowing the focus of attention
4 March 2000 -- A truth beyond appearances
13 January 2001 -- Taking time, just to live
24 July 2001 -- My proper and settled scene
4 November 2001 -- The hard duty of finding rest
14 March 2002 -- The day and its invitation
6 May 2002 -- In search of the proper level
 
• [3.4.2.1.2] The mind has an inaccurate way of seeing endless troubles and implications in those concerns
 
29 April 1998 -- Right in front of my face
27 February 1999 -- Choosing what to do next
19 November 1999 -- Relatively content for now
2 September 2001 -- Along the twisted path
6 April 2004 -- An appearance of mud
 
• [3.4.2.2] The actual quantity of exertion needed at any given point in time is often less than it appears
 
• [3.4.2.2.1] Unnecessarily fragmented attention keeps the "better" occupations from receiving their due
 
7 September 1997 -- Undivided attention to the task at hand
3 June 2000 -- A good place to have a seat
10 August 2000 -- Waiting for a chance to rest
12 May 2001 -- Living under reduced conditions
20 May 2002 -- To enter the mighty current
14 July 2002 -- Substantially at rest amid all that is
 
• [3.4.2.2.2] Inherent, indeed, in one's personal definition is a relatively small set of core requirements

 
2 July 1998 -- Adjusting my expectations
22 September 1998 -- Maintaining control over what I can
15 September 1999 -- Continuing with basic duties
7 November 2000 -- Escaping in moderation
12 January 2002 -- My careful separation
4 June 2002 -- Illusions of expectation
10 July 2002 -- Elevated sufficiently