It's a difficult satisfaction to notice and enjoy, because:
if you have the item when you need it, your gratification is immediately met, with no "gap time" in which to grasp the difficulty you might face NOT having it.
- if you do not have the item at hand, it is like the Prodigal Son - you're so swept up in other emotions - frustration, exasperation, anger, impatience - that when you get your desired item, the emotions are over-blown in the other direction, and you only notice the circumstances under which you were able to retrieve or attain this needed item. Or you're full of self-congratulation for having attained it.
But if it takes you a minute to retrieve what you desire - from a store you already have, the satisfaction is immense.
I figure if everyone was given the simple pleasure of knowing something would be there when he/she needed it, fear and panic and outrage and most wars in general could be diminished, because I feel evil - other than pyschopathic evil - comes from not knowing if there'll be enough for you, so you'll working unethically to tip the scales in your favor. Knowledge that "you'll be okay" could be a great pacifier.
Time spent in Africa really hones this sense of satisfaction - when it is experienced, because it is there that foresight can make the difference between a thirsty night and a comfortable one, or pain or the absence thereof. It takes experience to gain enough foresight to avert the simplest of discomforts in Africa - so listen to those who've gone before you! According to Mary Kingsley - Always, always boil/filter your water.
