I’ve always believed that freedom of mobility is first among all human needs, exceeding even the biological needs of water, food, and rest. I became acutely aware of that need at age 5 when I was confined to an orphanage following my mother’s death. My need to be free was foremost in everything I did from the moment I lost it until I left the orphanage at age 13. It was then that I experienced the most deliriously happy moments of my life. Finally, after 8 years of incarceration, I was free to move about. I could walk down the street, or not, as I chose. Suddenly, the air was cleaner, the sunshine was brighter, and the sounds all around me were like music. That tiny amount of freedom to be able to simply move about without someone telling me to stop here or to go there was so unbelievably precious and exhilarating I was determined to never let it out of my grasp again. To this day I would prefer death before losing my right to be free to move about. Anyone daring enough to hold a gun on me had better be strong enough to use it because I am not willing to let anyone restrict my movements.

 

Since those early days I’ve learned that freedom is more than merely the joy to be free from somebody else’s control. It’s really about the freedom to do, to follow your dreams, and to fulfill your destiny.  And in that context I am immediately aware that tens of millions of people—perhaps billions—are not free to pursue their own versions of happiness.   The restrictions they and all of us live under come more from rules, laws, societal barriers—especially from a lack of resources—than from any of our own  limitations.   To be free to pursue happiness today means we must have the income and the assets to draw upon for the essentials of life, and to travel, and to do those things that bring us a measure of joy in addition to watching sunsets or from contemplating the great mysteries of the universe.  

 

Inequality is the great barrier to our happiness pursuits. In a society in which the lion’s share of wealth and income flow to the few at the top, all the rest must be restricted from life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness . Paradoxically, those with the most too often do not understand that their wealth is the cause of many others’ poverty.   They are brainwashed into believing that wealth and poverty are choices made by the industrious and by the lazy.  

 

For those who understand these matters and issues, we can find some solace in giving more than we take, in helping those who cannot help themselves, and in being thankful that our needs are few.