Look how much things have changed. Just a short year ago I had no internet connection to stay in touch, no decent television to keep me company, no iPod to sing to me...how did I ever manage. Last night I decided to spend the night wrapped in a blanket with the warm glow of the woodstove keeping my soul warm and a blank stare on my face as I gazed deep into the abyss of my television. From time to time I would log into my Facebook account to see my news feed, what a great way to kill a night and relax...or so I thought. Well, at about 10:00pm I unglued myself from the couch and slumbered over to turn the television off, load up the woodstove and turn in for the night. That's when it hit. Listen to all I've been missing. The Great Horned Owls were calling, the rain gently hitting the roof...what was that? A deer was walking through the forest with its feet crunching through the last of the snow. I've just spent three hours on the couch, trying to relax, glued to the television when as soon as I turned it off, the forest was alive all around me. I had missed so much. As I laid back in bed I was now more relaxed listening to the calming sounds of the evening forest than three hours of watching mindless television.

Through the re-acquiring of material goods am I starting to disconnect again? When I moved into the yurt it was all about the simple life. Gas lights, reading a good book by candlelight, heating my water to wash on the woodstove. Now look at me; I'm sitting on the couch, still wrapped in a blanket, but writing this and posting it my Blog as friends are instant messaging me, television screaming at me and the shower is still dripping from my afternoon cleanup. What I truly miss is the reading by candlelight and listening to the forest through the thin walls of the yurt. It is true that life is all about choice. The television does have a power button after all. So, tonight the television is now off, the moon is full, and the only light I have on is one candle and the glow from the fire. I'm waiting for the evening chorus to begin.

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