A 19-year-old once said to me, ‘If I am sad I’d prefer being sad while sitting in a Porsche 911’.
This statement encapsulates a prevailing attitude that material possessions often overshadow deeper sources of fulfillment and happiness. In this fast-paced world, it's imperative to pause and reflect on whether we're authentically living our lives or merely chasing societal ideals of success and prosperity. Were people not happy before the invention of the PlayStation or streaming platforms?
Money has made ‘comfort’—a very personal and intimate feeling—so superficial that it must align with social expectations. Simply being oneself has somehow become synonymous with 'boredom'. It’s sad how we have attached our happiness to all the material acquisition, forgetting that true fulfillment transcends monetary value.
Is money so important? Can most of us name even 3 things that bring us joy without invoking money?
Yet, formal introductions often revolve around financial status rather than personal beliefs. The casual exclamation, "I'll die without that dress," highlights the hollowness of our desires and how insubstantial we have become.
Modern education systems often emphasize the importance of money over genuine learning and personal growth. Children are groomed to believe that financial success is the ultimate goal, leading to career choices driven by monetary gain rather than passion or fulfillment. Yet, many of us are left confused with the question: What truly brings us fulfillment if money is removed from the equation?
Tragically, a significant portion of global suicides (58% in 2019) occur before the age of 50, often stemming from the inability to attain the perceived 'ideal livelihood'. However, icons like Mother Teresa remind us that the richness of life isn't measured in monetary terms. Despite lacking material wealth, she lived a life full of purpose and passion, leaving an unforgettable mark on humanity.
It is not just the lack of independence to choose our career but also the layers of insensitivity that money attaches to every human. Whether it’s a brother planning the murder of another for his property or a friend resenting the other for their ”shallow success”. Corruption, murders, theft, and every other crime is a by-product of our obsession with money and the power attached to it in today’s world.
People are willing to sell their pictures online, blackmail others, or even kidnap in pursuit of wealth. This is how money has ruined every bit of sensitivity in our hearts. We would stoop down to any level to be able to make money, with one’s morals playing little to no interest in decision-making, whether it involves family or business. Nothing surpasses money. Yet, we do not take wealth to our graves with us, it is only the person we are and the soul that remain.
After all the poem “Ozymandias” says it all,
My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Money is important. No doubt. But does it define all our worth?
Think about how and what you would do if money were not there.
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