Friday 26 January 2018

Mark Sundeen

Mark Sundeen
   A simpler life: part 3
   After reading "The Man Who Quit Money" c2011, I was interested in learning more about the author, Mark Sundeen.
  His next book "The Unsettlers" c2017, revealed some of Mark's interest in a simpler life: "The comfortable life is a slippery slope toward the consumer life.  I wanted fewer bills, fewer rules, less stuff and more freedom.  Our brand of capitalism has laid waste to our land, our homes, and not the least of all, our souls".
  Although, at 41,  he married a woman who had been raised by hippies in a simple life, she realized that she wanted more of what the world had to offer - an education for a start. Mark realized that, although he was attracted to the ideals, he was repelled by the hardships.  And so, he decided to write a book about this topic and searched out couples that were leading lives of 'radical simplicity'.

  The first couple that he wrote about, fascinated me.  Ethan and Sarah arrived by train in Missouri, unpacked their bikes and rode to a farm that they had bought sight unseen.  Oh, yes, Sarah was 5 months pregnant.
  In order to raise a family with no money, no electricity, no insurance, they developed a community devoted to non-violent social change.  They became Quakers and became "The Possibility Alliance".  They realized that society had encouraged people to be 'individual', so living as a community required different skills.  But the group also created the security that usually comes from money in the bank.
  I was fascinated by their tremendous work ethic as well as their devotion to social change.  They had weekly meetings to express joys and challenges.  
   Their 3 inward goals were simplicity, self-transformation, and celebration.  Their outward goals were service and non-violent activism.  Wow!  They were organized!  But they loved to have fun also.  They began each day with an hour of meditation, prayer or yoga.  They were on a mission to change the world but began with themselves.
  
  The other stories did not interest me very much.  One couple lived in Detroit and bought up land in run-down sections of the city to build gardens.  Their focus was on eating locally grown, organic food.

   Another couple in Montana had electricity but no computers or cellphones.  They also did organic gardening.  They lived in a teepee but built a boathouse with a flush toilet and hot shower. Their business was called "Lifeline Produce".

  It appears that there is a trend back to farming, and this book mentions many other books that are written on the subject.

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