We (I) often complain about the horrors of plane travel--the pantomime of security, the overhead and checked bags weight and size contradictions, sardine seating arrangements etc., but in a comedian's bit I heard once-when you are strapped into a 89 ton steel can 30,000 feet in sky going 500 miles per hour, whether your croissant is stale or not should not be an issue.
With a little perspective, we need not take for granted such remarkable achievements.
The tales of woe that I get when someone's computer has to go to the shop for a week--there is no remuneration large enough for the catastrophe and angst of a hard drive (that after ten years) has died.
We have lost that tingling excitement and anticipation of new technology--the hard won discoveries. After a year of having an iphone, my parents the other night discovered why their phone would not ring--it turned out the silencer was on. While a good tip is to read the instructions thoroughly, for them, this turned out to be a fantastic discovery. Their life became a bit better, in fact, a cause for celebration.
We cannot enjoy anything if we are inpatient and expectant. If you always expect and want, you will never have the enjoyment of receiving. The difference between "Oh, the book I ordered has arrived. How wonderful." "Oh, finally, the book arrived."
We are in a remarkable situation, every time a new system lands another one is created. It is estimated that 4 exabytes of unique information is generated every year. It is true mastery--you are never done mastering. I believe in the Zen of technology. Those that enjoy and appreciate are constantly rewarded, while those that resist and expect any of it to actually be built just for them cannot.
I encourage this approach for myself. Thankfully for all us, Shunru Suzuki explains in Zen Mind Beginner's Mind, the beginner is the enlightened one.
