The Europeans built their cathedrals to stand the test of time. They hauled massive stones from hundreds or thousands of miles away to ensure their creation would wobble against the pressures of entropy brought by centuries of storms, floods, and heat.
Yet, one day the cathedrals will fall. It won’t be tomorrow. And it will not be in 100 years. But when they do, they will not be restored, or built again. The knowledge and the skill required to to do so will have been lost.
The wood home, on the other hand, does not last long. The same beams, and roofing, and floor boards cannot last for 1000 years. Yet, as a father teaches the son to care for the home, to rebuilt and replace those that rot away, the knowledge and skill to keep the home standing persists.
In this way, the wooden home lasts forever.
Connections
Link Explanation We like to forget that we are mortal. That we have an expiry date. Yet people have come before and many more will come after. If we were better able to accept the temporal nature of our existence we might make much better, wiser, choices. Like making those that preserve process knowledge over object permanance.
Reference
� Breakneck