I do not think that any civilization can be called complete until it has progressed from sophistication to unsophistication, and made a conscious return to simplicity of thinking and living.
Lin Yutang isn't simply praising rustic living or condemning modernity—he's describing a hard-won maturity that only arrives *after* mastery. A civilization must first earn its sophistication through genuine learning before it can recognize sophistication's exhaustion; this separates his vision from simple romanticism about the pastoral life. The insight cuts deepest when you notice he says "conscious return"—a person who never left simplicity hasn't made the journey at all, while someone cycling back has gained wisdom in the round trip. When a successful surgeon or executive finally stops performing their complexity for others and finds peace in ordinary routines, they're enacting exactly this progress.
“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive — to breathe, to...”
Marcus Aurelius“Drive your business. Let not your business drive you.”
Benjamin Franklin“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Seneca“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”
Benjamin Franklin