[pct-l] Be Thankful

[hiker97 at aol.com]

Your PCT hero and trial rapscallion, Switchback, would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Safe Holidays, and Happy New Year.  I know numbers can lie, but consider the following if the world was represented by a village of 100 persons:
 
57 are Asians
21 are Europeans
14 live in the Americas
8 are Africans
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52 are women and 48 men
30 are Caucasians and 70 non-Caucasian
30 are Christian and 70 non-Christian
89 heterosexual and 11 homosexual
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6 posses 59% of the wealth and live in the USA
80 live in some form of poverty
70 are semi or totally illiterate 
50 suffer from some form of hunger and malnutrition
1 is dying
1 is being born
1 owns a computer
1 has a university degree
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My point is if you woke up this morning in relatively good health, you are luckier than one million who will not live through this week.  If you have a full fridge, clothes, good roof over your head, and nice place to sleep, you are wealthier than 75% of the world's population.  If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and a few coins in your purse, you are one of 8 of the privileged few amongst the 100 people living in the world village.
 
And if you worry about your next hike and what gear to take, you are truly blessed beyond measure.  To have problems like that is beyond the comprehension many people will ever have.  I won't even go into owning a new motorcycle trike and being able to retire from working.
 
Your most obedient servant and trail-road rapscallion,
 
Switchback the Trail-Road Pirate
"May the Forest Be With You"