Returning home

We are animals.  Hunter-gatherers.  Our natures were engraved in us through our human history, nearly all of which was spend living in small tribes.  Our impulses are universal: a yearning for community, for cooperation, for autonomy, for egalitarianism.  This is our heritage, our true creation story.  

We are the survivors of those who survived and reproduced in such an environment.  It's deep within us.  

We can still watch this way of life in real-time, with real-life hunter-gatherers: the Pirahã, the Yanomami, the Hadza.

The chronic ailments of civilizational modernity are those of material-abundance and time-scarcity: we're overfed, overstressed, overstimulated, under-connected, under-rested, and under-introspective.

Is our society truly catering to the needs of human beings?

It's worth considering that hunter-gatherers, contrary to popular stereotypes, appear to live, and have always lived, lives that many would envy: a 20-hour workweek, no boss, abundant laughter, self-sufficiency, a healthy and diverse diet, and a deep community of friends and support.

Through history, many have fled civilization to live with the Savages; few the inverse.

There's no doubt, we've learned an amazing amount how the world works: how to grow food at scale, how to control reproduction, how to communicate at great distances, how to access the world's vast knowledge and information.

What if we tried to merge the best of both worlds?

Lessening our focus on material possessions.  Resisting quick dopamine snacks. Avoiding the hedonic treadmill trap.  Owning our technology, rather than it owning us.  

A life of open-eyed recognition of who we are, and what makes us fulfilled.  

Living wisely, proactively.  

An attempt to return home, with what we've learned.

A quote:

"We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time."