A Simpler Way of Life
I am sitting here in the living room of my house while my nieces and nephews enjoy their Easter presents. I can't help but think that our society has lost sight of what is really important in life. How do we measure success here in the US? Why, we measure it by the amount of money in our bank accounts, the size of our house, and the brand of car we drive! Why don't we measure success by the amount of satisfaction in our life? I think we abandoned this practice because no one can see our personal satisfaction. We get satisfaction by knowing our car is better than our neighbor's car and our house has more square footage than our neighbors.
On Wednesday, I had to attend three lectures at Creative Scholarhip Day. The first lecture I went to was about the Global Citizenship Project that our university participated in. Our university sent a team of students and a guide to one of five countries - Netherlands, Costa Rica, India, Taiwan, and Mali. Listening to the students speak about their experiences was so refreshing. Their views on US politics and our foreign policy changed so much after their trip - as well as their views on material possessions. The girls that visited Mali were thoroughly impressed by the happiness exhibited by the individuals living in this area. These people lived in huts and had no worldly possessions - but yet they were so happy. All the people in this country are on anti-depressants. Perhaps if we stopped measuring our self-worth by the amount of possessions we have, we would be a happier society. I'm not saying we should renounce all worldly possessions and live like the Amish - but I am saying perhaps their way of life is better. Maybe we should start measuring our self-worth by our contributions to society. In a little over a year, I will be entering a very lucrative health field. Salary caps are in the six figures - but right now, I'm surviving on a little over $10,000 per year. This is my solemn vow that money will never change me as a person. I will still strive to do for my neighbor and to be a better member of society. I just wish the rest of our country could do the same...
posted by ahsirt at 6:32 PM
1 Comments:
Here in the U.S. we measure our self worth by respect...respect that we get by owning larger houses and cars. Listen to the media messages: With the new platinum card, people will treat you different. We always see images of rich people being catered to. Poor people have to open their own doors and park their own cars. Is it better to be rich in the U.S.? Depends how you look at it. As far as respect is concerned, you will get more if you are living in a rich neighborhood (which is why the potholes in my street aren't fixed yet) And the police always respond to calls faster in the better neighborhoods. But, if you are talking about personal satisfaction, that is always attained without money. The key is to be happy with what you are doing...like you said. But there will always be that nagging thought that you are a second class citizen. I wish people would realize life has nothing to do with money and everything to do with who you gather around you.
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