Poor is just a state of mind...

In 1845 Heny David Thoreau built himself a small cabin on the shore of Walden Pond, near Concord; there he remained for more than two years, “living deep and sucking out all the marrow of life.” Wishing to lead a life free of materialistic pursuits, he supported himself by growing vegetables and by surveying and doing odd jobs in the nearby village. He devoted most of his time to observing nature, reading, and writing, and he kept a detailed journal of his observations, activities, and thoughts. It was from this journal that he later distilled his masterpiece, Walden.

I bring this up because I believe it was in Walden that he observed an Indian Village where, compared to white's they lived in poverty, but the Indian's never saw it that way. Their attitude was that all of nature's resources belonged to everyone (they didn't understand the concept of "owning" land). The only way you made it your's was to kill it or work it, etc.

He saw them as content and happy in the natural world until Europeans came and changed all that. Anyway I guess this is one reason why I love camping and hiking so much.