In the Sept. 22 issue on simplicity, I appreciated Danielle Klotz’s statement that living simply “arises from a desire to be in a closer relationship with God” and her acknowledgment of the irony that living simply makes things more complicated. 

Eileen Kinch mentions her grandparents in the Great Depression. Simplicity was not a fashion statement or spiritual decision then. It was a necessity. I’m surprised there was not more talk of the Great Depression and its generational effects.  

I sensed a tolerance of different approaches to simplicity. I have known people who try to live simply and look down their noses at anyone who doesn’t do what they do. These attitudes pull you farther from God.  

The article by David Garen on overconsumption is humbling. I know I consume way too much. Again, it’s complicated. Some I know religiously practice recycling. But it is soul-crushing to hear that 95% of plastic is not recycled but goes to landfills. 

Alternative energy is complicated. When you ask people who drive electric vehicles where they get their power, they point to the wall where the cord plugs in. Where does that power come from? A power plant. What does the power plant burn to make the electricity? Coal or natural gas. Does some of the electricity come from wind turbines? Wind energy is highly complicated, too. 

I wonder if people who live on the land or tend a garden are the closest to God. I grew up on a farm, and it’s hard to argue with that. When your job causes you to spend many hours a day in nature, you get to talk to God a lot.  

Brian Stucky, Goessel, Kan.