Indonesian Earthquake

As I read about the earthquake that has killed over 5,000 people (and counting) in Indonesia, I juxtapose the suffering of those people to my thoughts about pace of life, and being free from stress, of discovering who I was born to be. Are my thoughts and feelings the reflections of someone who has the luxury of being at the higher end of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Almost certainly.

When I heard a group discussion about of shopping at WalMart, I recall saying that being socially conscious is a luxury. I would imagine that most people who shop at WalMart do so because it's cheap. If they had the means to consider options, I would imagine a good number of them might be motivated to consider the broader social concerns.

I've had the unfortunate, or fortunate, depending on what one is hoping to learn or feel, experience of seeing abject suffering in Bangladesh. And there's no doubt in my mind that nothing creates more stress than wondering when and where one's next meal will come from. Even with controlled fasting, I've known enough hunger to feel that overwhelming--and even paralyzing--need. I can't imagine what it must be like for someone who doesn't get to break a fast at a specific and predictable time. I try to keep this in mind when my steak isn't cooked just the way I want, or the wild salmon isn't available on a particular night (and I'll have to settle for farmed salmon).

So many people feel this way everyday in Bangladesh, and so many must feel this with tremendous intensity following the Indonesian earthquake. So many people at the bottom of the Maslow hierarchy of needs pyramid.