[h2odragon]

So few of us have ever faced our basic needs; we have no idea what's important and what's not. Being fed, watered, warm, and clean is the assumed base state of our existence, without consideration of the effort it took to achieve that state.

When those things cost more we could be content with them. Now we have this feeling we're cheating, somehow, because life is so easy.

[kurthr]

Go camping for a week. Get off the beaten track and see the vista of nature. Carry your clothes, your food, your house. Realize how uncomfortable, challenging, beautiful, and humbling the world around us is.

I would recommend doing it in an appropriate place, with friends, during a nice time of year. The small changes we often make to our environment will become apparent and you'll still have a better perspective on the luxury we enjoy vs the needs you truly have.

[TedDoesntTalk]

You could also try fasting for 2 days. Or 3. You’ll have a new perspective like after camping for a week.

[kurthr]

I suppose, but like shoveling snow for a few mornings (but going back in to have a big breakfast in a warm house), you only hit one of your needs. It's realizing the network of requirements we have (food, clothing, movement, safety, friendship) that makes through camping compelling.