Why we suffer more in the West

I was talking with a close friend about our collective experiences of working with people in other parts of the world and how this contrasts with life in the West, esp. the UK. This got me thinking, how come people in places like Madagascar or Borneo seems so much happier and yet are financially poor? We measure our success in materials ways, in developing countries, the people will measure success in many different ways, it wont be about the size of our car, the latest gizmo or how much my property is worth.

Firstly they have

PEACE OF MIND
We in the West are much more stressed. We have so many things to worry us. I have two young boys - they wake at 8am and by 8pm the light goes out and they sleep. During the day they run, they laugh, they cry but they enjoy their day.

They don't have the stresses that we adults carry around. Research demonstrates that having an optimistic outlook results in significantly less illness. We are gloom and doom merchants. It is OK to be realistic about things.

HEALTH AND ENERGY
People in the developing world tend to live more active lives, working on the land,etc. Of course they get sick as we do. As the research shows (over 80% of illnesses have their roots in stress) combine physical and mental well-being and you will feel better.

We in the West work and then drop in front of the TV. We then are subject to the news, TV soaps and other depressing shows. I am sure that this does not help us to remain active.

HARMONIOUS PERSONAL RELATIONS
We have higher rates of divorce in the West - we have the teachings of Jesus - LOVE - yet we seem unable to sustain. We see fault when there are good in all. The way society appears to be breaking down makes this harder.

Of course, this leads back to peace of mind, health and energy. People in the developing country seem to possess a great warmth towards all. I remember cycling with my wife and being invited into a family christening in Borneo. The father worked at the hotel we were staying and were honoured guests. Neither party could speak the language of the other and the family were not "rich" and yet their welcome was richer than many would be in the West.

PURPOSE AND GOALS
People in the developing world have a clear purpose - feed the family, tend the land - much simpler ways to make a difference to their world. We in the West, despite or maybe because of the complexity, seem to find it harder to have this clarity of purpose and set goals to achieve.

FINANCIAL FREEDOM
Finally we worry about money, I know I do. We have a scarcity mentality. When you have little, I guess there is no point. Look at the housing market - if we stopped seeing our house as an investment and seeing at as our home, then it going up or down in value becomes less of problem.

Living within our means would be a sensible policy to adopt especially in these times of credit crunches.

I know that the above is a generalisation. I believe if we thought about our lives along these five areas and not on material things we must just be happier in the West. It would be great to live with the joy that I see so often in other parts of the world.