“You could say human evolution started when the first brave ape came down from the trees. But scientists have long said that it was making tools that really set humans apart.” NPR Article, July 26,2010 (view the whole story: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128676181
This article on NPR the other morning got me thinking about the tools we use for living.
When most of us think of tools something like this comes to mind.
Regular tools
But what about the other tools that have been invented to help make life much easier?
Gardening Tools
Relaxation Tools
Tools for dressing yourself again after illness or injury
And the list could go on and on. Bottom line, what ever job you need to do, there are tools to help!
While using tools is uniquely human, choice of tool and when to use a tool vs using our own body is also uniquely human.
Many modern conveniences are fun toys but also limit the movements we must make within a day as we move through life. Take the remote control for example, no one has to walk across the room to change the channel anymore. I’m not even sure you can change the channel on the TV can you? And there are remote control devices for absolutely EVERYTHING now. (That’s why you might want to consider the headband shown above) .We have tools for cooking food so we don’t have to chop wood, haul it home and build a fire every morning to cook the food for the day. We have cars to carry us all over town to shop and run errands and sometimes complain about being in the car all day, when our ancestors had to walk everywhere they went. So while tools are a blessing for sure (I personally would not have survived for long in pioneer times) it has also lead us to becoming less physically fit and more mentally overwhelmed. We can now do everything from the comfort of our recliner in front of the TV. In fact just last night I sat with my Droid X in my recliner under the guise of spending time with my husband watching TV but really checking email, doing research for this article, reading my bible and checking my to do list for tomorrow. No wonder we don’t sleep well, our bodies are well rested but we have a hard time turning off our minds.
So how do we create balance so that our wonderful 21st century tools benefit us rather than harm us? Start to use that uniquely human ability to make better choices every day.
The great upside of this double edged sword of tools to make everything easier, when a body changes is response to illness or injury, tools are available to keep you moving forward and participating in life instead of retreating. Consider these tools of Ability vs Inability. www.FunctionalFlowers.com is an online store filled with just such tools. Be sure to check it out. You may find something you could use yourself no matter what the level of your health OR you may know someone that needs some tools of ability.
