Another Lazy Day

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."
----Henry David Thoreau

Lake View from Our Cabin

Thoreau wanted to get the most from his life by determining what was really important, and he did that by removing himself from his regular life in Concord, Massachusetts. One side of this was economic: he reduced his material needs by living simply, so that he would not have to spend much time supporting a lifestyle that he did not need or care about. The other side was spiritual, not unlike the spiritual retreats of eastern and western religions.

And it worked. Thoreau liked it so much that he lived in his cabin for more than two years, and came back with a great story. He worked on this story for several years afterwards until it became Walden.