The Simple Life

The good ol’ days…. I must be old if I am starting a sentence with those words.  Ah, yes, I am “older”.  In a few days, I will commence the last year of my 40’s.

I remember when...

·       My brother and I would spend hours fishing in a little creek near our home. 

·       We also rode our bikes to a 7-eleven when a full-size candy bar was only 10 cents.

·       Going to a drive-in theatre was so much fun.

·       If I wanted to use the phone, I had to pick up the receiver to make sure there was no one else using the phone (yes, we actually had a party line in West Virginia). And yes, we could listen in on each others’ conversations.

·       Someone would fill up my gas tank, check my oil, and wash my windows.  For free.

·       I’d dig up potatoes.

·       I typed term papers on a typewriter and used things such as ribbon, carbon paper, white-out, and my pillow to scream into when I didn’t leave enough room at the bottom of the page for my footnotes.

·       I sold the first IBM personal computer that had a 10 MG hard drive.  “More storage than you’ll ever need,” was what I would tell my customers.

·       I sold the first Mac personal computer in 1987.  And I loved it then as much as I love it today.

·       There was no such thing as the internet, cellphones, smartphones, and all that goes with it such as Yahoo!, email, or Facebook.

Ah, the good ‘ol days.  Maybe it's just the memories of my childhood and young adulthood.  I didn't have a mortgage, bills to pay, or so much responsibility?

So, how do my fond memories of years ago relate to my life here in Togo?  Well, there is something to be said about contentment.  While complacency may be a side-effect, there really is a wonderful aspect to being content.

I watch kids play with rocks with quite some creativity, drag broken toy cars or an empty can tied to string,  play with cards in some imaginary game, or play a fun hand-clap-feet-kick routine and laugh with such joy as they try to out-wit each other.

My point is, what I watch is very sweet and simple and wonderful.   And how I live is also just, well, simple.

There are no grocery stores.  There is one market.  There are boutiques that sell a handful of specialty items, but no Target, Walmart, Costco, IKEA, or Staples.  There is such simplicity to it all.  I can’t be confused or frustrated in deciding which item to buy, because in all likelihood, there’s only one choice.

And when I find joy by having lots of time to read a book or to know that it will take me one hour just to make it from one part of town to the other because I have to stop to greet everyone I know, I think I’m pretty lucky to have that time to be present.  I am not stressed.  I don’t feel rushed.  There’s no such thing as “being late”.

I wish you could be here to enjoy the simple life.  And to be reminded of a time that was so easy, never rushed, and full of contentment.

Reverse parade (per Ryan)

May 1 was Togo’s Labor Day.  Ryan and I heard about a parade and were determined to see it.  Well, we saw it!  About 12 – 14 organized groups walked or moto’d down the main rue.

Now normally in a parade, there are lots of people who stand along the streets to watch the parade’s procession.  They will wave to the people in the parade, take their pictures, shout their names, etc.

Well, we had a “reverse parade”.  All the people in the parade’s procession stared at me and Ryan (we were standing on the side of the road).  They waved to us.  They pointed at us.  They took our picture.  Some of the people recognized Ryan and some recognized me and so they naturally, shouted out our names to get our attention.

It was a reverse-parade with me and Ryan as its stars and I must say, it was spectacular.  It really was our 15 minutes of fame (and literally, the parade was about 15 minutes.)