Truer words

I was cleaning up some old computer files this morning and ran across the remnant of a letter I wrote to a friend in 1996 (Yes, a real postal letter. Remember those?). In it, I relate how relatively quiet life was - I was getting ready to take an exciting new job, my wife was prospering at her job, we had gone to see old friends. And I opined that a quiet life is a good thing:

"Truth be told, I like it that way," my smug 28-year-old self wrote. "When you're very young, you think you want to spend every day tackling deep philosophical questions and saving the world. Get a little older and you realize that cold beer, color television (with a remote), and soft toilet paper are about all a man really needs on most days."


I really wish I had known how true this is. And how much truer it continues to get.