Is there anything wrong with being attached to what I personally find beautiful? Something that makes this world more fun, more colorful, more interesting? Even if these things are from the past and seem to have no place in modern times?

Here are some examples:

On the beautiful Island of Juist in Northern Germany, until today, there are no cars. All transportation is still being done by horse carriages and bicycles. The people here, at least the majority, is in some aspects attached to a way of life from the past. And so are those who visit Juist to experience this.

The pacing on Juist is slower, it is less noisy, less hectic. More timeful, if I may invent a new word to describe it. 

Is it wrong to drive a horse carriage in all kinds of weather and do all the hard work related to this? For some it is merely a reluctance to move forward. For those who still do it to this day it probably has a value in itself, which can not be substituted with money. 

I enjoy being on Juist and to see that I am not the only one „crazy“ enough to do what I love, even if it comes at a price.

I am involved in Scandinavian Seaplanes, a company that has decided to keep the seaplanes in Norway operating in commercial air transport. These seaplanes from the 1970s can obviously not compete with modern business aircraft when it comes to speed and efficiency. They fly low through the valleys and fjords, seldomly higher than a few hundred meters. They are bound to take off and land on the water which takes considerable skill by the pilots and make the operation vulnerable to wind and weather. Helicopters have found their way into the niche previously held by seaplanes, because they are much more versatile. However, we are still flying the seaplanes. Because our customers are still choosing us.  Why are they able to chose us? Because we have consciously decided to dedicate our life and work to something in which we personally find beauty, fun and hence satisfaction. Yes, this comes at a price. All of us could make much more money and have much more free time, if we chose to go with the general flow. The airlines need pilots who „sit for money“, however we made the choice to „fly for food“ instead. Food for the soul.

Even within this company, there are different opinions as to how far we should go with our idealism, and wether we should focus more on those parts of the operation that reliably yield the greatest revenue. 

Personally, I am very much attached to flying the seaplane to the quiet and remote mountain lakes of Hardangervidda, where we support the reindeer hunting in September. Here, the customers are mostly local people who chose to spend their money and vacation to travel into the wilderness, instead of going to the beaches in spain. And they chose to squeeze themselves into our little seaplane, together with their shot reindeer, when it is time to go home. Why are they not taking the big noisy helicopter that can transport twice as much reindeer in a slingload underneath? Because they still have the choice. Because some idealists are determined to not give up what makes them and others happy, even if it sometimes comes at high personal costs. We and our customers like the sport, the challenge, the excitement, the adventure.

To me it feels like the world needs these „islands“ where beauty and uniqueness have not been swept away by the huge wave of rationalism that is rolling over the world.

Like a reminder that says „The good old way of life is still possible, even today! And real adventure is just around the corner. Just make your choice and you can still have it!“

Todays times hardships in my view have a purpose:

We are running out of time and / or money, in order to be forced to make our choices.

Only if we are forced to decide between the many options, setting priorities, we learn who we really are. In a world where everything is possible at the same time, we can not find out the true shape of our individual souls. Compare it with packing something in a plastic bag:

As long as there is still air in the bag, the shape of the object inside is not clearly visible. Suck the air out and „vacuum pack“ it, and you will see the true shape of it.

So in these times the air is being sucked out of our balloons that we wear around our true selfs. We have to make our choices and define what is ours, and what is not. And this is a very valuable step towards living a life in abundance, happiness and joy. Because we all are pieces of a great multidimensional puzzle that fits together perfectly, once the pieces have found out their true, unique shapes.

To get back to the beginning:

Our attachments, whatever they may be, are beautiful and very valuable. Because they are ways of our souls to express our unique footprint in to this world. 

So the world indeed becomes a better place for all of us by accepting, cherishing and protecting our attachments.

By the way- being attached to pure rationality is also possible, and that is absolutely ok. Those who are create exactly the pressure that is needed for us to find our shapes. Thank you all for finding and being YOU!

Christian