It was a life with purpose. And it was also a lot of fun. Fishing is fun. Hiking up mountains is fun. Building a wall out of river rocks dug up from the bottom of a glacial lake is not fun. Not at all. But it does give a work ethic that you can take anywhere in the world.
I was surprised to find myself so much fuller of Faults than I had imagined, but I had the Satisfaction of seeing them diminish.